Arms and Enemies
by curt lemon
Summary: When Caroline and her friends go out looking for a bit of adventure, they never could have known just how much they would find. Now thrown into the lives of thieves and murderers, Caroline slowly feels her entire life perspective altering as she learns more of the world and herself. But when reality catches up, Caroline will learn just on whom, if anyone, she can truly rely. AU
1. Everyone Has A Story

**I:**_**EVERYONE HAS A STORY:**_**I**

"Everyone has a story," was his response when she asked if he had one. She ignored the fact that he was deflecting and followed his gaze past the iron bars out to the sea. It was calm today; she couldn't help but notice that it seemed to match his eyes- calm and blue. She had known a man with similar blue eyes- though they were rarely ever calm. As she watched the steady waves of the water, she pondered on his statement. It was true, she realized- everyone has a story. When she was a child and she dreamed of the day she had children herself, she imagined that late at night when they could not sleep she would sit by their bed and tell her children all her tales of adventure. She imagined her life would be full of story-worthy experiences; and it was. Here at the end of her line, she had many stories to tell. Only, when she had imagined telling her children the story of her life, they were always good ones- stories of friendship and triumph and close-calls. Stories that always had a happy ending. But the universe had different plans. As it turned out, her big epic story would not have a fairy tale closing after all. Yes, there were moments of friendship and triumph and close-calls, but not a happy ending. "So how about you tell me yours?" He said, now turning to look at her. She glanced at him to judge the sincerity of his request and found his curious eyes genuine. Could she tell him her story? _Yes_, she decided. If this was her last chance to let it be known then she might as well. It would not change anything after all. She had only one day left, and this nameless man with blue eyes was her only company. She took a deep breath, "My name is Caroline Forbes... and this is not how my life was supposed to be." She began.

* * *

_**1715**_

_**somewhere at sea**_

Niklaus Mikaelson hated surprises. Call it survival instinct; he liked to be prepared. So he could not for the life of him understand why he ever agreed to let Kol navigate their ship to a destination unknown to Klaus. He had agreed to it in a moment of weakness; Klaus was tired and in need of sleep, crew members were getting sick all over the deck (something in the food, Klaus didn't eat for two days to make sure he wouldn't catch it), and all he wanted was some peace and quiet. Only Kol would not stop bugging him about some place special he wanted to go. When Klaus asked for the specifics, Kol only said it was a surprise. "No." That was Klaus' initial response, but after relentless nagging, he finally gave in, just to make Kol shut up. However, Klaus was not expecting Kol to be so thorough as to have Klaus sign a piece of paper that laid out the terms of the agreement, and have Elijah stand as witness.

"This all seems a but excessive, don't you think, Kol?" Klaus exasperatedly rubbed his hand over his face.

"I will take no chances with this, brother, and knowing that you are a man of your word, I intend to take every bit of it."

"Leaving me with no possible loophole," Klaus understood.

"Exactly," Kol grinned as he handed the quill to Elijah, so he could sign as witness.

"Well, there is always the one ultimate loophole." A smirk tugged at the corners of Klaus' lips.

"And what is that?" Kol took the paper and quill from Elijah and shoved them to Klaus eagerly.

"It's simple really," Klaus smiled, signing his name, "I would just need to kill you."

Kol's jovial expression faltered slightly, only to return again a second later. "You kid, brother, and very poorly, if I may add."

But now that Klaus was well-rested and back in his right mind, he was sorely regretting the agreement. As he watched Kol on the quarterdeck looking over a amp with Finn, Klaus festered in his frustration from not being in control.

"Relax, Niklaus." Came Elijah's ever-so-calm voice behind him. "Finn is an excellent sailing master, he will not allow Kol to lead us astray." Kol was the only one of the brothers who did not know how to sail; his immaturity and short-attention span never allowed him to be taught. Klaus was reminded momentarily of how he had once been in the process of teaching his youngest brother Henrik, but shook the memory from his mind before any lingering emotions could take hold. "Where are we going?" Klaus asked. He knew he was not likely to get an answer from Elijah, but still found himself unable to suppress the need to know. Elijah chucked lightly at Klaus' obvious discomfort with Kol being in command. "Well, first we need to stop in North Carolina. But after that, we plan to make way on to Kol's surprise."

Klaus nodded. Of course by now word of the Spanish trading ship that was recently robbed at sea would have gotten to the governor of North Carolina, Charles Eden. Governor Eden would likely suspect the Mikaelson clan to be the culprits and was no doubt expecting a visit from the band any day now. A year ago Klaus had formed a deal with the North Carolina governor that granted his acceptance into the colony's town without fear of persecution. In return, Klaus agreed that his crew would rob only the Spanish; English ships would be left untouched. The brothers also granted the governor and a handful of other gentry men a small percentage of their stolen treasures. This arrangement proved to work well for both parties, especially Klaus'. While there were other places they could dock without fear, North Carolina was different from the slime ridden islands that pirates so usually frequented. In the English colony, the crew could stock up on decent food and drink, indulge in women who actually had all their teeth, and walk through clean streets without being thrown into a street fight.

"And where would that be?" Klaus tried once more, but Elijah only chuckled again. Klaus sucked in a frustrated breath, but when he looked over to Elijah and saw the boyish grin he was sporting, Klaus was suddenly transported back to their days of childhood. It was a rare smile; Elijah did not often wear one of such size of genuineness. Klaus' anger dissipated at the sight and he then looked back to Kol with a resigning sigh. "Fine," he said, "I will allow Kol this one thing, this... _surprise_." He spat the word from his mouth as if it were cursed.

Klaus pushed himself from the railing he had been leaning on and as he walked away, Elijah spoke again, "I'm curious Niklaus, do you know what day it is?" Klaus scrunched his face in confusion. Why would Elijah ask him that? Klaus stopped keeping track of time the day he left his old life behind. He was no longer in need of it. Now, Klaus did what he wanted when he wanted. "No," he said. Elijah nodded in understanding, "Of course not." The pair left it at that and Klaus retreated to his chambers wondering why the date would even matter at all.

* * *

_**Mystic Falls, Colonial Virginia**_

"Caroline!" Elena burst into the bedroom where Caroline was half dressed, her maid Bonnie Bennett pulling a dress over the petticoat and stay the blonde was wearing. Caroline gasped in shock, but Bonnie remained unsurprised. She had very good ears and was difficult to sneak up on. "I see we have decided to abandon mannerisms this morning," Bonnie said, referencing the fact that Elena came in without knocking "and a good thing, because I just have to say, Caroline, this dress is _dreadful_." Elena laughed at Bonnie's jab, and when Caroline only glowered at the maid's comment, Elena laughed harder, earning herself a similar scowl. Despite that Bonnie was in fact an employee in the Forbes' household, Caroline and Elena had known her their entire lives and thought of her more as a friend than anything else. Therefore her comments, which would be considered bold and out of place for anyone else, were perfectly acceptable in the eyes of Caroline and Elena.

"Oh come on!" Caroline exclaimed, "It cannot be that bad!" When Bonnie made no attempt to soothe Caroline's worries, she turned to her other friend for an opinion, "Elena?"

Elena merely examined the dress with crinkled eyebrows and a sympathetic expression. "Ugh!" Caroline groaned, throwing her hands up in her usual dramatic fashion before crossing them over her chest. "Just finish tying it up," she muttered. Bonnie snickered and got back to securing the back of the dress.

"Where did you get that anyway?" Elena questioned.

"It was a gift from the Lockwood's," Bonnie explained as Caroline continued to grimace at no one in particular. "They only recently came to Mystic Falls, and the Forbes are hosting them tonight." Bonnie finished with the dress and gave Caroline a smack on the rear when she was done. "Ow!" Caroline squeaked, rubbing the place where Bonnie hit her.

"Why are you having them over? Are they important people?" Elena asked.

"Who knows," Caroline sighed, not too excited about the sure to be boring evening. "I suppose it's possible, since my father is the governor, and it would be necessary for him to be acquainted will all people of importance. You will be there tonight, right Bon?" Caroline only met these Lockwood's once before, for a short period of time after they first arrived. The mother and father were very decent and made a good impression, but did not strike Caroline as particularly interesting. She remembered that her father mentioned they had a son- Tyler, was it?- but she never got the chance to meet him that day.

"No, Caroline. I am your friend and your handmaid. Not your sister."

Caroline groaned, when she was younger she had fantasies that her parents would see how close she and Bonnie were, and happily take her into their home as Caroline's new sister. (Even if back then Abbey Bennett had been her maid, she always brought her daughter with her; the two literally grew up together). She wanted to be seated next to Bonnie at the table, having conversation with her the way she and Elena did at dinners and other such gatherings. Suddenly reminded of Elena's earlier intrusion, she straightened up eagerly, "What was it that had you in such an anxious state?" A slow smile crept onto Elena's face, "Well, actually, I wanted to talk to you about something that happened last night."

"Mhm," Caroline encouraged, now seated at her vanity as Bonnie styled her hair and put on her lace cap and hat.

Elena sat down on the chaise at the end of Caroline's bed and took a deep breath, deciding to get straight to the point, "Matt proposed."

"Really?" Caroline responded nonchalantly, examining herself in the mirror, "To whom?"

Elena's face scrunched in confusion. "Caroline!" Bonnie scolded as she hit Caroline on the shoulder with a hairbrush. "What she _means_ to say is, that's fantastic Elena!"

"Sure," Caroline said swiveling around to face Elena, "So, what did you say?"

Elena narrowed her eyes at the pair, "You two don't seem very surprised by this." It was more a question of 'why are so calm?' than a mere statement. Caroline rolled her eyes and turned back to the mirror, "Oh, Elena, as if you did not see this coming?"

"No, actually I didn't," Elena scoffed, standing up. "But you two did? Well... why did you not warn me, or...or-

"Wait," Caroline turned her gaze back on Elena, ignoring Bonnie's protests, telling her to keep still. "You're not happy." Caroline pointed out. Elena faltered for a moment, unsure how to respond. "Oh my goodness!" Caroline's hand flew up to cover her mouth in disbelief. "You said 'No'!"

"I did not say 'no'! I just-"

"You just, what?"

"I just did not say yes either."

"Wait," this time Bonnie spoke, "so you did not say anything. What did you do, just stand there? Walk away?"

"No!" Elena exclaimed, "How rude do you think I am? He did not ask for an immediate response. He chose to give me time to think it over."

"I don't understand," Caroline's voice was softer now, "You would still be happy though, if you planned on saying yes. So why do you look so sad?" Elena dropped her gaze, she always underestimated how perceptive Caroline could be.

"I like Matt, I do. He is sweet, and a hard worker-"

"And beautiful," Caroline interrupted.

Elena chuckled, "And beautiful," she agreed. "I just fear that if I marry now, what will the rest of my life be?"

"I know what it will be- it will be you sitting at home, probably pregnant, reading books, waiting on your husband, sewing little baby blankets and hosting dreadful, adult events."

"Caroline!" Bonnie scolded again.

"Is that meant to encourage me to say yes?" Elena questioned sarcastically at Caroline's blunt description of her future. "Because if so, you have made a very poor case for your beautiful Matt."

Caroline sighed, she forgot how sensitive Elena could be- and perhaps her statement was a bit harsh. "All I am trying to say is that that will be your life, and from what I see on your face it does not look like you want it."

"But I do want it, just- not today. I do want to have a family, children, all of it. I only imagined a bit more of youthful fun before that happened."

"Are you calling us bad friends?" Caroline stood.

"Excuse me?" Elena was confused as to how Caroline could have interpreted her words as an insult.

"We have given you plenty of youthful fun!" Caroline exclaimed, "Have you forgotten the time we found those underground tunnels in the woods and played hide and seek in them all day? Or the night of my eighteenth birthday when you stole your father's liquor and we danced in the cemetery?"

Elena smiled fondly at the memories, "Of course I remember, those are marked as some of my favorite entries in my journal."

"You should not forget when Caroline fell out of the carriage and ripped her dress." Bonnie added and Elena immediately burst into laughter.

"No!" Caroline stomped her foot, "That is not to be remembered, and it is not funny! Stop laughing!" But Elena and Bonnie failed to cease their hysterics and only laughed harder, causing Elena to double over, "Ugh! You two are horrible friends!"

"Alright Caroline," Bonnie calmed down, "You have been up here long enough, your father wanted to see you about something this morning and it's now nearly midday. And I need to clean this mess you call a bedroom."

"Fine, I'm off to see my father then. Bonnie. Elena," Caroline nodded goodbye to the two and made her way to leave the room.

"We can still talk about Matt later though, yes?" Elena asked, not ready to make a decision and still needed to hear her friends' opinions on the matter.

An idea occurred to Caroline, "Actually, no," she said turning, "No, we are done talking. I plan instead on taking you for fun."

"Pardon?"

"Yes!" Caroline was excited now, "The three of us are going to have one last exciting, youthful, adventure!

"But-"

"No buts! The three of us will meet tonight, after dark, at the edge of the woods behind this house. Do you understand? Yes? Fantastic." Caroline smiled and walked away, mind reeling with the possibilities of the night. Tonight she, Elena, and Bonnie would enjoy themselves. It had been too long since they last sneaked away to have a secret adventure. A few months ago, on the night of Caroline's birthday, was their most recent secret rendezvous, and while it may not have actually been that long ago, the prospect of Elena getting married made their future time together seem fleeting. Caroline felt it was already obvious that Elena would say yes, so she did not want a moment of the little time they had left together to go to waste. Once Caroline was gone, Bonnie and Elena shared a look, and Bonnie spoke first, "Do you want to do this?"

Elena let out a short laugh, "Do I have a choice? When Caroline decides to do something, what can stop her? I suppose I will be seeing you again tonight." Elena smiled on her way out of the room.

"I suppose so," Bonnie smiled back, busying herself tidying the clothing strewn across the floor, both girls wondering what Caroline could possibly have in mind.

* * *

_Next: Before their dinner with the Lockwood's, Caroline's father presents to her a rare gift, accompanied by a bit of news that she finds slightly unsettling. Kol reveals to Klaus his big surprise, which ends in a night of enjoyment for him and his crew. Caroline, Bonnie, and Elena embark out into the night in search of fun, only to be faced with a disaster as Mystic Falls falls into chaos, resulting in the disappearance of Caroline, who wakes up the next morning in an unfamiliar place. Just as she wakes she is able to make out the voice of English man, "Elijah, brother, let Klaus know I have one more present for him, will you? This one looks like a tasty treat."_

* * *

**A/N:** **Firstly, thanks for reading! I'd love to hear what you think (praise, complaints, I take it all) so feel free to shoot me a review. They fuel my fire! If you like, you can catch me on tumblr (my URL is curtlemons). Thanks, and have a good one!**

**EDIT: I'm coming back to add this note in light of some comments I've gotten on my more recent chapters. If you are looking for a docile, sweet Klaus who will fall in love with Caroline the first time he sees her, I don't recommend this fic for you. The more I write them the more I realize ****just how complicated and long winded Klaus and Caroline's story is. They are not Stefan and Elena, they will not fall in love in a matter of two days. They will in fact actually hate each other. I feel that the best Klaroline stories are slow burns, that explore every side of their dynamic/relationship. **


	2. Hoist the Colours

**A/N:**** I'm aware that according to the show, Mystic Falls wasn't founded until the 1800's. But for the purposes of this story, it was colonized much earlier than that. (Disclaimer: If you recognize it, I probably don't own it.)**

* * *

**II:****_HOIST THE COLORS_****_:_****II**

"Daddy!" When Caroline walked into the study and saw her father standing there she could not help but run into his arms. For the past two weeks Bill Forbes had been away on a trip to the northern colonies, on what Caroline could only assume was business. "Caroline, sweetheart." He smiled warmly and pulled her into a tight embrace. "How was your trip? Did the north treat you well?" She asked as she released him.

"Yes, it went very well." Bill stepped behind the large oak desk and motioned for Caroline to take a seat in the chair across from him. "I brought you a gift."

Caroline's grin grew. Because of his position as the governor, she did not get to see her father as often as she would like, but he always made good on the time they did have together; and whenever he was gone for long periods of time, he always returned home with lovely, thoughtful gifts. When she was a child he would often bring her toys or dolls. As she got older, he was more likely to return with a beautiful new gown, or perhaps a copy of those romance novels she enjoyed so much. This time, she could not help the small gasp that escaped her as he opened up a small box and lifted the cloth inside to reveal a simple yet beautiful pendant necklace. "My goodness," she brought her hands to cover her mouth as Bill lifted the necklace out of the box, "it's beautiful, Daddy."

Bill smiled at his daughter's positive reaction, happy that she was pleased with the gift. Caroline was very precious to him, as he had raised her to be exactly the daughter he wanted her to be. He got up to step around the desk and behind Caroline in order to put the necklace around her neck. It was made of a simple gold chain, and featured a small blue stone. She lightly grasped the pendant that rested in the space between her collarbones. "You know," her father moved back to his seat after he secured the clasp, "I was almost unable to have that here for you. A band of men attempted to rob us just outside of Pennsylvania. I was carrying that necklace in my personal pouch and one of the men took it off me."

Caroline gasped, "What happened? Were you hurt? How did you get away?" Caroline had a tendency to ramble, especially when she was worried, and she doubted anything could worry her more than the prospect of her father being attacked.

Her obvious concern brought a small smile to Bill's face. "No, I'm quite alright. The robbers were overtaken and brought to justice later that day. I stayed behind to see it was done."

"Justice..." Caroline repeated with a small voice, hoping it did not mean what she suspected.

"Yes, darling. Justice." He gave her a very pointed look, "They were hanged."

Caroline's expression immediately saddened at her father's words. She couldn't help but fell sorry for the men who lost their lives. "Caroline, you know what we believe."

"Right, of course," she straightened up and tried to imitate the strong, determined persona of her father, "A man who steals is a man who dies." She recited the saying that her father had been repeating to her since she was a young girl with the strongest voice she could muster up. Apparently it was good enough to please Bill, as Caroline could deduce from his grin of satisfaction. "That's my girl. Now, you are aware that the Lockwood's will be joining us for supper?" When Caroline nodded he continued, "Do you know who the they are?"

"Bonnie told me that they are people of importance."

"Yes, they are. In fact, Mister Lockwood has a seat on the Virginia Council. Once his son Tyler completes his education, he will likely follow in his father's footsteps."

"Impressive," Caroline murmured, not entirely invested in the conversation.. She was more interested about what would happen tonight after their guests left. _Perhaps Damon could help us sneak out with a small boat, _she thought. Caroline was not particularly fond of the Salvatore, but Elena seemed to be quite close with him. Also, Caroline could not help but sympathize with Damon. Four years ago, Damon found his father, Giuseppe Salvatore, dead in his home, and his brother Stefan missing. Because Damon was 18 at the time, he was rendered capable of taking care of himself. No one ever saw Stefan again, and Damon had been on his own ever since. He now worked on the docks. Despite his low status occupation, he continued to garner a bit of respect from the upper-class of the community due to the high position his father held when he was alive.

"Caroline, this is important." Her father interrupted her thoughts.

"Right, of course." She straightened up to show that he had her full attention.

"I expect you to be on your best behavior tonight. Tyler Lockwood is your age, he would make a good match."

Caroline froze. _A good match? _"You don't mean..."

"Caroline, you are at a sensible age to begin thinking about your future. About marriage. Though he will likely wait until his education is complete to wed anyone, if you caught his fancy now, you could be promised to him."

"Marriage..." Caroline tested the word in her mouth.

Bill could sense her wariness and attempted to reassure her, so that come supper time she would be relaxed and natural, instead of nervous and anxious. "It's nothing official, just something for you to start thinking about. Just make a good impression, alright dear?"

Caroline painted on the smile that she knew always pleased her father and nodded, "Of course, Daddy. I'll do my best."

* * *

"So, what do you think?"

Klaus gazed ahead to the shore in the far distance. _This is Kol's big surprise? _He thought, and as he pondered over what Kol was offering, a large grin grew on his face. That was all the confirmation Kol needed to know he had done well. "Ay!" Kol exclaimed, clapping Klaus on the back, "That's the spirit!"

"It is quite a unique thought. Tell me, did you really come up with this all one your own?" Klaus questioned.

"Of course I did!" Kol pouted at Klaus' inability to believe that he thought this up himself. "Finn did not even _know_ it was almost your birthday! And when I approached Elijah, he told me he had no plans to celebrate! Can you believe that?"

"Yes, I can. You know we haven't celebrated a birthday in years."

"Well I actually enjoy a good party. I was bored of this no-birthday business. And we all know the best kind of party includes plenty of trouble." Kol's words were matched with a glint in his eye that anyone who knew him recognized as the sign of a devilish idea stirring in his mind.

"And what better place for trouble than Mystic Falls?" Klaus could not deny the thought Kol had put into this. Coming back to the place they were born (and all despised) in order to perform a good ol' cliche plunder. Tonight when the sun went down, Mystic Falls would become utter chaos. _The crew will definitely enjoy this_, Klaus thought.

While in North Carolina, Kol had secured plenty of rum (and wine, since Elijah preferred the classier drink)- enough for the whole crew to have plenty of drinks before they invaded Mystic Falls. Everyone would be at least slightly drunken, and no one would have any inhibitions about what would happen tonight. Not they would have them anyway- they were pirates after all. But Kol wanted to ensure everyone was on their wildest behavior.

"You know how Finn gets when he drinks," Klaus warned.

"Of course I do!" Kol grinned, "That's the whole point! Once we get rum in him, he becomes a completely merciless animal- similar to your good friend. I think I'll enjoy watching our usually docile elder brother behave like the true pirate he is, won't you?"

"Ay," Klaus had to admit- watching Finn lose it was most entertaining, "And what of Elijah?" Klaus doubted that the oh-so-refined Mikaelson would willingly take part in the festivities.

"He's agreed to stay with the ship," Kol muttered. Klaus could see the disappointment in Kol's face. While he may be the youngest of the lot, reckless, and often selfish, he had gone to a lot of trouble to ensure a night of great fun and he wanted all of his brothers to take part. The fact that Elijah was staying behind was disappointing.

"Well I can assure that we'll do just fine without him." Kol cheered back up at Klaus' words of assurance. The pair turned around to see that the crew had gathered on the deck and each man held a drink in his hand. Elijah and Finn walked up the steps and handed Kol and Klaus their own cup. Kol threw his arm over Klaus' shoulders, "Lads!" Kol called to the the crew, "Tonight we drink! To Klaus!"

"To Klaus!" They all shouted, raising their cups to him, "Hurrah!" Everyone gulped down their rum and began preparing the boat to sail inland. Klaus turned to his brothers. They were all smiling, "To Nik," they said and swallowed their drinks.

"To me," Klaus uttered with a devilish grin, downing his rum.

"Gentlemen," Kol poured himself more rum, "tonight will be a night to remember."

"Ay," they all agreed. Tonight, Mystic Falls would be at the mercy of the Mikaelson's and their crew. Their drunken, ruthless crew. Yes, it would be a night no one could possibly forget.

* * *

Elena hummed along with the rhythmic sloshing of the paddles hitting water. Bonnie was singing a song Caroline was unfamiliar with, so she just swayed along with the rocking of the small paddle boat (which Elena had convinced Damon to bring out for them after the dock quieted down and everyone went home for the night).

"_Yo, ho, haul together, hoist the colors high. Heave ho, thieves and beggars, never shall we die."_

The lyrics reminded Caroline of her father's words, repeated to her throughout her life. _A man who steals is a man who dies._

"_The king and his men stole the Queen from her bed, and bound her in her bones. The sea be ours, and by our powers, where we will we'll roam."_

Caroline closed her eyes and lifted her face up to the moonlight. She felt very airy and carefree in this moment. Bonnie had brought along some hemp that she pinched from her Grams' herb supply. Initially, Elena protested to having any, but not too long after she agreed and joined Bonnie and Caroline. Damon only rolled his eyes and insisted on going out on the water with them. "Neither Elena nor Bonnie are able to swim," he argued. So eventually Caroline conceded and allowed him to join them. He was now sitting quietly behind the three girls, looking out on the water.

"_Yo ho, haul together, hoist the colors high. Heave ho, thieves and beggars, never shall we die."_

"How was your dinner, Caroline?" Elena questioned as she ran her hands back and forth through the water, staring intently at the ripples.

"_Some men have died, and some are alive, and others sail on the sea- with the keys to the cage, and the Devil to pay, we lay to Fiddler's Green."_

"It was well," Caroline replied absently, opening her eyes to stare at the stars. She attempted to find the only constellation she knew- the Big Dipper. Her mother had taught her about the patterns in the stars, but that was the only one Caroline remembered.

"That's good," Elena hummed.

"_The bell has been raised from it's watery grave, do you hear it sepulchral tone? We are a call to all, pay head to squall, and turn your sail toward home."_

Caroline tried to recall the evening she had, but it had mostly been a blur. Tyler seemed decent, very proper in fact. Her father was right, he would make a smart match. But Caroline could not ignore the fact that there had been nothing special. No spark, no chemistry. _Bonnie was right, I have surely been reading too many romance novels_, she chuckled to herself.

"What's so funny?" Caroline couldn't be sure, but she thought it was Damon who asked.

"Do you believe in true love?" She asked to no one in particular.

"Of course!" Elena was quick to say. "Love is... _everything_." She sighed. "And we all know Bonnie does," Elena chuckled, nudging their friend. Bonnie smiled happily; she claimed to be in love with a man who worked on her Grams' little farm. Elena and Caroline had yet to meet the man, but whenever Bonnie mentioned him, she always had the dreamiest look on her face. It was so unlike the usually practical Bonnie that the two never doubted for a second that what she felt for this mystery man must be real.

"Damon?" Caroline turned to him, curious to hear his thoughts on the subject.

He sighed and Caroline thought it sounded like sadness mixed with annoyance. "Sure."

She scoffed at his half-hearted reply.

"And you?" He asked.

Caroline opened her mouth to respond, but before she could get anything out there was an explosion of light, a loud bang, a gush of wind, a sharp pain on her head, and then darkness.

* * *

Damon's head burst above the break of the water, gasping for air. His head whipped in every direction, trying to figure out what happened. One moment Bonnie was singing and Caroline was talking about love, and the next moment there was a loud explosion and Damon was thrown underwater. He took a few deep breaths to calm himself, and noticed the sound of screaming and canon fire in the distance. He turned in the direction of shore. He couldn't make out the specifics from his distance, but he could clearly tell that the town was under attack. _Damn_. Damon could not decide if it was a blessing or curse that they had chosen this night to sneak out. On the positive, they were away from all the chaos. On the negative, out of the four of them, only two knew how to swim. As he tried to stay afloat, he felt something poking his back. He turned and saw that it was a scarp of the paddle boat they had been in. As he looked around, he saw planks of their boat floating throughout the water. A canon must have blown by them and that was what threw him in the water. As Damon came to this realization, he felt the panic start to creep in.

The boat was in pieces.

And only two of them knew how to swim.

He turned frantically, trying to spot the girls. "Elena!" He shouted. "ELENA! BONNIE! CAROLINE!"

"Damon!" He heard someone calling his name and recognized it as Bonnie. He saw her then, only a few meters away, hanging desperately onto a plank of wood to stay afloat. "Bonnie! Hold on! I'm coming!"

"No, you need to get Elena!" Bonnie called.

Damon looked around for her but did not see her anywhere. Realizing that she may not have been so lucky as Bonnie to be near a piece of wood, he dove under the water, and there he saw her sinking lower and lower. He sped off in her direction and grabbed onto her, pulling her above the water, and throwing her over his shoulder. But even in the open air, she still wasn't breathing. "Come one Elena." Damon hit her on her back, in an attempt to get the water out of her lungs and stay afloat at the same time, "Breathe Elena!" He pounded harder and let out a breath of relief when she finally gasped for air. He made his way over to Bonnie then and grabbed onto her with his other arm. "Where's Caroline?" He asked he began to make way for the shore. Bonnie pointed into the direction opposite of land and Damon followed her finger to see Caroline in the far distance, floating on a piece of wood. From what he could tell, she was unconscious. She lay unmoving, draped over it stomach down. "Dammit," he muttered, and tried to go in that direction.

"You won't be able to reach her," Bonnie shouted over the waves and canon fire in the distance. "The current's already caught her!" Damon could see Bonnie was right. In that short amount of time, Caroline was already twice the distance from them she had been a minute ago. Damon glanced between the shore and Caroline a few times, feeling torn. "Dammit Caroline." He hoisted Elena farther over his shoulder and pulled Bonnie tighter, turning in the direction of the shore and swimming there as fast as he could while holding on to two other people.

"What are doing?" Elena shouted when she realized which way Damon was headed. "No, we have to go back for Caroline!" She insisted, but Damon ignored her and kept on his path, knowing Bonnie was right- there was no way he could get to her now. "Damon stop! We have to save Caroline!" She pounded on his back and tried to wiggle her way out of his arms, but he only gripped her tighter.

"Caroline knows how to swim," he reasoned, "She'll be fine." He took one last look in the blonde's direction. She was so far out now that she appeared as little more than a piece of drifting rubbish. "She'll be fine," he repeated, hoping he was right, trying to convince himself. "Caroline will be fine."

* * *

Caroline woke up with an awful pain in her head. She also woke up wet, and lying on a hard surface. Feeling the sun attempt to pierce through her shut eyes, she turned her head to the side and brought her hand to the spot on her head that was throbbing.

"Kol, what is this?" Caroline's eyes shot open at the sound of a man's voice.

"A drifter," a different voice said, "I fished her out myself." In front of Caroline's face she could see only a stack of wooden boxes covered in nets. She could tell the men were standing behind her.

"Yes," the first voice said, "but why?"

"Wh-why?! I honestly do not understand why my brothers keep you around, Trevor. Ah, Elijah, brother, let Klaus know I have one more present for him will you, this one looks like a tasty treat."

_Next: Klaus has an unexpected reaction to Kol's latest "gift," and Caroline ends up overboard- again! Caroline becomes reacquainted with an old friend, and Klaus attempts to put the headstrong blonde in her place. And much to Klaus' dismay, the crew seems to take a liking to the newest member._

* * *

**A/N: I was going to make this chapter longer, but this felt like the best place to end it. Sorry for anyone who was expecting a Klaroline meeting in this chapter, it's coming soon! Also, when I was in high school I kind of dozed through my APUSH class, so if I make any mistakes that you history buffs recognize, feel free to call me out!**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed the first chapter, you guys fuel my fire. I'd love to hear what ****_everyone_**** thinks. (Comments, complaints, and I'd especially like to hear you theories!)**

**Also, you can catch me on tumblr if you like at curtlemons.**


	3. Poor Manners

**A/N: Sorry for the wait, my muse paid me a long visit one night and then disappeared, leaving me with 12 pages of editing to do and absolutely no motivation. What I Don't Own: TVD, the musical prowess of Florence Welch, and the World (yet)**

**BTW, I recreated Caroline's mother for this fic. So although Bill is from canon, her mother- Eliza- will be an original character that I created.**

* * *

**III:_POOR MANNERS:_III**

_And I'm damned if I do, And I'm damned if I don't_

_(Florence+TheMachine)_

"Niklaus, wake up."

"Go away," Klaus grumbled into his pillow.

Elijah sighed and marched to Klaus' bed, ripping the pillow from Klaus' grip. Klaus huffed through gritted teeth, "What is it?"

"Kol has something else for you. A girl, or woman, I suppose."

"Pardon?"

"He found her drifting in the water unconscious and pulled her in. In an act of shocking selflessness, he has decided to let you have her."

Klaus chuckled at Elijah's sarcastic tone, and got up from the bed to pull on a pair of trousers. Kol attempted to bed a woman at every opportunity he had. Since the one he pulled from the water would likely view him as her "hero," Kol probably assumed she would make an easy catch. So the fact that he was handing her over to Klaus was about as selfless as Kol could get.

"While I appreciate the gesture, I don't want her. Let's not forget the last time Kol gifted me with a woman."

"Ah, Hayley," Elijah nodded at the memory. Hayley was a loose women that Kol picked up one time in North Carolina. While she had been nice enough, the brother's came to question whether or not she had any wits about her at all. She was caught trying to steal from them as she left.

She attempted to steal.

From a band of notorious pirates.

Klaus wondered how Hayley could have possibly imagined that situation ending well for her.

"So what shall we do with this one? I'm fairly certain she's a resident of Mystic Falls."

"Throw her back in the water," Klaus said easily, picking up the discarded clothes strewn across his floor and throwing them into a pile on the bed, looking for a shirt that was even partially clean. "Let Kol know I appreciate the gesture, but the last thing I need is another one of his playthings on my ship."

Elijah only continued standing in place, looking at Klaus with disbelief. When Klaus caught sight of Elijah's expression he paused his movements, "Is there something wrong?"

"She is still unconscious, Niklaus," Elijah scoffed. "She suffered a head injury, and it is unlikely she has eaten or had anything to drink in hours."

"Get to the point," Klaus urged, squinting his eyes at his older brother.

"The point?" Elijah exclaimed. In an effort to calm his rage, he turned his head to the side and took a deep breath. Closing his eyes and speaking slowly, Elijah continued, "You would throw a weakened, defenseless girl overboard?"

"Ay," Klaus responded simply.

"She will surely drown," Elijah now stared straight at Klaus, pleading with his eyes for Klaus rethink this. "I beg you to reconsider."

Klaus rolled his eyes, _Elijah, always so eager to bestow his compassion upon helpless strangers. _Klaus was perfectly aware that Elijah also had a particularly weak spot for women in danger. Klaus found it ridiculous, really, and called Elijah out on the foolishness of it at every opportunity he had. "Your compassion is extremely irritating."

Elijah stood quiet, waiting for Klaus to make a decision regarding the girl.

After several seconds of silence in which Klaus realized that Elijah was not going to back down, he made a choice. "Fine," he conceded, stepping forward so that he was standing directly in front of Elijah. "When she wakes, give her water and bread."

Elijah relaxed his tense stance, pleased that Klaus had chosen to show mercy on the innocent woman, but immediately tensed back up as Klaus spoke again, "And _then_ you will throw her over."

Elijah's gaze flicked up to his brother's face, looking for any sliver of mercy or compassion. But when he was met only with Klaus's cold blue eyes, he knew the decision was final. Klaus would not be swayed now, not on this. Recognizing the defeat in Elijah's eyes, Klaus smiled, pleased that Elijah was accepting his authority.

Klaus threw on a shirt he had deemed clean enough, tucking it into his trousers as he walked past Elijah to his chamber door, opening it to reveal the sunshine and quiet deck (though it was a bit past midday, much of the crew was still sleeping, exhausted by their night of thievery and rioting). "Lovely day," Klaus said with cheer, mocking Elijah's now sour mood, "wouldn't you say, 'lijah?"

The mention of Elijah's name seemed to pull him out of his shock and back to reality. He turned to Klaus, who now stood in the doorway with an infuriatingly cheerful grin. Klaus was enjoying watching Elijah submit to his dominance. Which, of course, only made him angrier. Elijah briskly walked out of the door, shoving past Klaus without a word.

* * *

Gripping the cup of water and loaf of bread, Elijah walked over to where Trevor sat on top of a stack of crates.

"Trevor," he greeted, prompting the man to face him and hop off the crates so he could stand before Elijah, "where has Kol gone?"

Trevor chuckled and pointed to the quarterdeck "There." Elijah looked to see Kol lying shirtless, on his back, in the sunlight.

"What's he doing?" Elijah narrowed his eyes at Kol's peculiar behavior.

"Attempting to darken his skin," Trevor smiled. "he believes it will make him appear more exotic, and therefore more desirable." Elijah raised at eyebrow at Trevor, who laughed once again, "Says he heard it from one of the crew members, Brady, I think. Don't think Kol took into account Brady's penchant for pranks. I almost told him, but I thought it'd make a nice laugh to see Kol with brown skin."

"Of course." On another day, Elijah might have chuckled at the men's ridiculous antics, but not today. "Well, thank you for keeping an eye on the lady, you can-"

"Caroline." Trevor interjected.

"Pardon?"

"Her name's Caroline."

"How do you know that?" _Is Trevor familiar with this woman?_ Elijah wondered. If so, then perhaps Klaus would have a different opinion on how to deal with her. _Perhaps if she is a friend or family member of Trevor's, then Klaus will change his mind._

"She told me," Trevor interrupted.

"She's awake?"

"Has been ever since you went to tell Klaus about her. Caroline?" Trevor called to where Elijah knew the girl- Caroline- was, out of sight, behind the crates. When no response came, he called a bit louder, "Caroline?"

This time, a head covered in blonde hair popped up from behind the crates. "Did you say my name? Sorry, I was focusing on getting this knot right." The girl smiled and stood, holding up a short of rope that was tangled into what looked like an attempt at an angler's knot.

"Here," Trevor stepped around the crates, readjusting the knot, showing Caroline where she had looped the rope through incorrectly, "I was teaching Caroline some knots while waiting for further instruction." He explained.

Elijah nodded, confusion clouding his mind. Caroline was so cheerful. Was she not at all fazed to be on a pirate ship, surrounded by criminals?

"Aha!" She exclaimed, smiling widely at her success on the angler's knot. "Thank you, Trevor."

"Of course," he smiled in return. "Elijah here brought you some water and bread."

Elijah then realized what the case must be. When Trevor stepped back a few paces to get the measly meal, Elijah muttered under his breath, quietly enough so that Caroline would not hear, "She thinks we are simple sailors."

Trevor gave a small nod, "I didn't know what Klaus would want her to know, so I let her to come to her own conclusions."

"Very well," Elijah replied, "I'll take it from here."

Trevor nodded, handing the food to Caroline, and began to step away, but before he left he whispered one more thing to Elijah, "Is she staying?"

Elijah could see in Trevor's eyes that he was already attached to Caroline and wanted the answer to be yes.

"No," he responded firmly. It was important to not allow Trevor to see his hesitation, his resistance to the idea of throwing Caroline over. Klaus and Elijah may have their disagreements in private, but Elijah knew that in public it was imperative for them to appear in sync, a strong union.

At the end of the day, no matter what, Elijah would always stand by Klaus. For that, Elijah could not decide if he was weak or strong. Weak, perhaps, for lacking the courage to challenge his little brother, for lacking the courage to pursue a life of his own. Strong, perhaps, for possessing the ability to sacrifice so much in the name of family, in the name of loyalty.

* * *

Klaus had lied. It was not a lovely day. To anyone else it might appear so, but to Elijah the sunshine and calm waters were only a mockery of the thoughts clouding his mind and the turmoil going on inside his head. Six years ago he had sworn his loyalty to Klaus, and that was something Elijah valued- loyalty. But at that time, he never could have foreseen the man Klaus would go on to become. Klaus had always been a bit darker than the average person- that was just the way he was- but after the eventful year that reshaped all their lives, Klaus had been on a downward slope into complete heartlessness, tugging Elijah down with him as well. Occasionally, Elijah allowed himself to ponder on the possibility of having a life away from Klaus and the treacherous life they led. However, in the end, he never had the courage to actually walk away from his brother, or even voice his desire to, for that matter.

Elijah pushed thoughts of his brother from his mind and focused on what Caroline was saying. She was telling him the story of how she came to be floating in the water. Fortunately for Elijah, she seemed clueless as to what really occurred.

"Anyway, I hope my friends are ok. I was with them last night, right before my memories seem to fail me." As she spoke, she held the railing on the side of the deck and looked out over the expanse of water. One of her hands came up to touch the small scar on the left side of her head, "I just wish I could remember what happened."

"Have you ever been on a ship before?" He inquired conversationally.

Caroline nodded no, swallowing the bite of bread she had taken. Elijah thought to himself that she was lucky they had just stopped in North Carolina and restocked their food supply. The bread she was eating was much fresher, and less tough, than what they'd had only a few days before. Then Elijah remembered Caroline's not far-off fate, and realized she was not lucky at all. What was a loaf of fresh bread when death would arrive before it even had time to even properly digest?

"Well, I have been on one before," she corrected, "but I've not been on the water before. It was in harbor. Giuseppe once owned all the docks in Mystic Falls. When I was younger, his son was a good friend of mine and I often went to visit him. He spent much of his time on the ships, he and his brother, becoming familiar with them, as the two were expected to follow their father in the business someday."

Elijah did not know why she was telling him this, but did not stop her, grateful that her rambling provided him with an excuse not to speak. He feared that anything he said to her would feel deceitful, because no matter how much friendly conversation he made, he would still be the one to send her to her death.

Her eyes took on a saddened expression with her next words and she turned her gaze back to the horizon, "Until Giuseppe died, and my friend disappeared. Damon refused leadership after that, and ownership was handed to his uncle. Now he's a simple worker on the docks." She cleared her throat, coming out of her thoughts. "I'm sorry, I haven't yet thanked you for rescuing me from the water. How rude of me. It was incredibly gracious of you."

_You have nothing to thank me for_, he wanted to say, but did not. "Of course, it would rude of someone to see a person overboard and not offer them help. But truly, you should be thanking my brother, Kol. He was the one who spotted you and pulled you in."

"Yes," she said tersely, "I have met Kol."

Elijah raised an eyebrow, curious about the tension in her voice when she mentioned Kol. "May I ask why the mention of my younger brother elicits such a reaction from you?"

"He is vulgar and inappropriate." Only after the words spewed out of Caroline's mouth did she consider the inappropriateness of speaking so freely.

"Yes," Elijah sighed, "Kol does not mind proper etiquette. I apologize for him."

"No need," Caroline stated, "he left me be after his face became acquainted with my hand."

Elijah smiled widely, pleased with the image of Caroline slapping Kol, and Kol shrinking away. "You are quite bold, for a woman." Elijah remarked.

Caroline wrongly interpreted his statement as one of disapproval, "I'm sorry." she bowed her head, "my father tells me often that I lack propriety. He tells me that I will sooner find myself in a ditch than with a husband if I do not learn to control my loose tongue around men."

"I was not scolding you, Caroline."

"No?" She questioned, looking up at him.

"No, I was praising you. Anyone who can put Kol in his place, especially a woman, is very well, in my opinion."

An infectiously bright grin spread over Caroline's face; no one had ever expressed approval of her boldness before.

Suddenly, looking at Caroline's smiling face, Elijah felt sick to his stomach. _This girl will be dead shortly_, he reminded himself. Well, if she was to die, Elijah reasoned that the least he could afford her was the truth. "Caroline, I feel I should be honest with you. We are not sailors, as you think us to be."

Her smile wavered, "I don't understand." She looked at him, waiting for an explanation. Elijah looked away to the water, not wanting to see whatever disgust or horror or fear would come over her as he told her the truth. "How is it that I'll be getting back home?" She asked, growing anxious by Elijah's suddenly distant behavior and odd comment.

_We are not sailors_, she repeated the words in her mind, trying to find the meaning in them, since Elijah was providing her with none. If they were not sailors, then what were they doing sailing a ship? What else could they be?

As the realization hit her, she dropped her cup and staggered back a few paces. Elijah found himself surprised by how quickly she came to the correct conclusion. Caroline's mind was quicker than he might have guessed.

"You're- you're-" she swallowed, the word getting caught in her throat.

"Pirates," he finished. "And I'm afraid you won't be going home."

"What will you do to me?" She asked, the fear evident in her now small voice.

Elijah saw now that he'd made a mistake. Engaging Caroline in conversation had been a bad idea, along with telling her the truth. Now, it would only be that much harder to do what had to be done. "I'm very sorry, Caroline."

His words made her face to fall into an expression of sheer terror. "What are you going to do to me?" She repeated with more urgency, all of the horrific things they could do running through her mind.

Caroline was not a fool, Elijah could see that now. She was fully aware of the danger she was in, and did not attempt to skirt around the subject. This only made him more sympathetic and desperate to help her. "They are the captain's orders," he said quietly, hoping she would understand that this was not his doing, that he had no choice. At the moment, Elijah was unsure why it was so important that she understand this, why her opinion of him mattered at all. It shouldn't. Oh, but it did. Elijah did not want Caroline to die thinking that he was at fault. He had killed plenty of men in his time, women too, and without guilt or remorse, but Caroline was different. For reasons he did not know, the thought of killing her was evoking emotions he had long since been a stranger to.

"Can you not change his mind?" She pleaded, her eyes welling with tears now. "Perhaps I could speak to him?"

"He will not be convinced," Elijah's swallowed and locked his jaw, trying to keep his emotions hidden.

"He- he-" Caroline stuttered, fists clenching and unclenching at her sides, "Has he no heart?" She practically shouted.

Elijah realized then why he would find it so hard to do what Klaus ordered. Caroline was bright. She was effervescent and quick minded. Her smile, when present, was contagious. She was kind and polite, but her unique personality poked through, unwilling to be hidden. Caroline was similar to the kind of people Elijah and Klaus had once been, before they became rogues of the sea, before Elijah abandoned his own morals and beliefs in favor of pleasing Klaus.

As Elijah thought, Caroline stared straight into his eyes, searching for any sign of benevolence. Elijah looked back into hers, the silent plea in her eyes beginning to crack him. _This would be the final nail in my coffin,_ he thought. If Elijah were to do as Klaus asked, he would officially be lost to his former self. For years, Elijah told himself that the cruel, treacherous man he sometimes resorted to being was just a mask- one that he put on only when necessary- that underneath he was still the honorable man he had once aspired to be. But if he sent Caroline to her death, he would no longer be able to delude himself. Elijah would have no choice but to admit it, admit that he too had become as monstrous as Klaus. It was then that Elijah realized that his loyalty to Klaus made him weak, not strong. Weak, because Klaus had taken Elijah's soul and thrown it in the sea, and Elijah had not even made the effort to stop him.

_No_, Elijah resolved. Klaus could be as cold as he pleased, but Elijah would not allow himself to be pulled under as well. Perhaps saving Caroline was his one chance to redeem himself.

"Sometimes, I think not," he finally said in response to her question. "But-" _I can help you,_ he had been about to say, until a set of arms collided with Caroline's side, pushing her overboard into the water with a shriek of surprise, and Kol was left standing where she previously had been.

"No!" Elijah gripped the deck railing and looked over where Caroline had fallen, the water still bubbling and foaming from the impact of her hitting the water. "What did you do?" He demanded.

"I did what you couldn't," Kol sneered, his voice slightly hushed.

"Wh-why would you do that?" Elijah stammered, his eyes searching the waters below. Caroline had yet to come up.

"When I saw Klaus and asked him why he was not busy enjoying my gift he told me that he instructed you to get rid of her. But when I saw you, your face said differently. You were about to try and _save_ her," Kol spat. "I've done you a favor. You are only lucky that Klaus did not see as well."

But Klaus had seen. From where he was standing out of Elijah's view, he had seen the whole thing. Including the moment Elijah's intentions changed and he made the choice to defy Klaus's orders. He might have been out of earshot so that he could not hear their conversation, but the whole thing was written on Elijah's face.

"What's going on?" One of the crew members came to stand beside Klaus, whose eyes stayed locked on Kol and Elijah, "I thought I heard a woman shout."

"No one important," Klaus assured, "Just some woman, _Caroline,_" he spat her name. Klaus did not know who she was, or even care, but she had somehow convinced Elijah to go against Klaus's orders, which made her dangerous. It was a good thing she was gone now.

"Hm, I knew a Caroline once. Blonde hair, blue eyes," the man reminisced. Klaus's brows furrowed. He found it curious that the man's description matched the woman now in the water, but brushed it off as coincidence. There must be a hundred blonde haired, blue eyed Caroline's in the world.

"Caroline Forbes," the man muttered.

It was said so quietly that Klaus almost didn't hear, but he did. And something about that name stuck out in his head. "What did you just say?" He inquired.

"I knew a Caroline once," the man repeated, "Caroline Forbes."

And then it clicked. Forbes. As in Bill Forbes, governor of Mystic Falls. Klaus had a rush of ideas then, and before he could even properly sort through them, he immediately decided he had a new plan for Caroline. Without hesitation, he ran to the place where she had been tossed over and dove in after her.

* * *

After pulling Caroline out of the water and back onto the ship, Klaus offered little explanation on his change of heart.

"What did you do that for?" Kol questioned.

"Caroline may prove to be useful to me yet," Klaus responded, dropping her unceremoniously on the ground as she gasped for air. "Put her in Kol's chambers for now-"

"Yes," Kol nodded in approval, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively.

"-and Kol can sleep in the berth with the crew." Klaus finished.

"No!" Kol whined, "Not the berth!" The berth deck was below the gun deck, where the majority of the crew slept on hammocks or cots. "It reeks, and there's no privacy!" He complained. But Klaus only retreated to his own chambers, preferring, along with everyone else, not to think about the kind of things Kol would need privacy for.

Caroline groaned, eyes squeezed shut in pain. That was the second time in the last 24 hours that she had been thrown into the water without any warning, and she was not enjoying it. Not to mention that her head had hit the floorboards quite hard when Klaus dropped her without care.

"What just happened?" She moaned.

"That would be me," Kol spoke. "Though really it's my brother's fault, if he could just make up his mind I feel we could have avoided the whole pushing-you-in-the-water bit."

"_You_," Caroline sneered, narrowing her now open eyes at Kol, but her attention was quickly diverted when she recognized another one of the faces crowded over her. "Stefan?"

* * *

"How is she?" Elijah inquired as Stefan came out of the room, shutting the door behind him.

"All right," Stefan responded, "A bit scared still, but trying not to let it show."

"May I ask how you know her?"

"We grew up together."

"In Mystic Falls?" Elijah questioned, and Stefan nodded yes. "I wasn't aware that was your home, why did you not say so last night?"

"Because Mystic Falls is not my home, not anymore. I stayed on board while the men had their fun, same as you."

Elijah nodded, remembering that Stefan had remained on the ship the previous night, under the pretense of feeling ill.

"You were the friend she spoke of," Elijah said, connecting Caroline's earlier story to the man standing before him.

"I'm what?"

"She told me about a friend she once had, who disappeared after his father died. I'm assuming that was you."

Stefan did not respond, only looked to the ground at the mention of his dead father, that being confirmation enough that Elijah's theory was correct.

Elijah straightened up from where he was leaning on the wall and went to knock on the door Caroline was behind when Stefan spoke up again, "Fair warning, Caroline has a sharp tongue, especially when she's sour."

"I'm aware," Elijah replied. Her words on Kol had informed Elijah as much.

"You should also know, her father is an anti-pirate radical. Before he became governor, he was a privateer with an English letter of marque. He made his name and his fortune by attacking and seizing pirate ships in order to bring them to justice before the English courts. That's how he got in favor with the government and was granted governorship of Mystic Falls." Stefan explained.

"Why are you telling me this?"

"Caroline loves and respects her father," he elaborated, "she always has, and she tries her best to please him. So if she was brought up with her father telling her all pirates are evil-"

"-then she will treat all pirates as such," Elijah finished, finally understanding the point Stefan was making.

"Even if she doesn't truly believe it. I doubt she'll even be able to look at me the same," he added.

"Thank you for the warning, Stefan." Elijah watched Stefan walk away, and knocked lightly on Kol's door.

"Come in," he heard Caroline's muffled voice.

He stepped inside, shutting the door behind him to see Caroline sitting on a chair in the corner of the small room, her arms wrapped around her knees which were pulled up to her chest. She said nothing, just watched him.

When the silence became too deafening, Elijah spoke, "I brought you some dry clothes."

She didn't say thank you, or even make a move to get them from him, so he sat them down on the bed in an attempt to respect her personal space. When he retreated to lean against the wall opposite her she got up and picked through the pile of clothes. When she saw what it was, she raised her eyebrows at him.

"These are boy's clothes," she stated.

Elijah smiled lightly at the tone of her voice, "Yes, well, I'm afraid that on a ship full of men, we are lacking in gowns."

She smiled at his remark, but then suddenly dropped it, remembering just what kind of ship this was, and what kind of men lived on it.

"I haven't forgotten what you are," she said quietly, eyes glued to the clothes hanging in her hands.

"And what's that?" He inquired, staring at the ceiling.

"A thief," she spat, snapping her eyes to him, "a liar, and a murderer."

"That is a loaded accusation."

"But all true," she retorted.

"Are you afraid of me, Caroline?" He asked, moving his gaze from the ceiling to her, hoping she would not be.

Just as Caroline opened her mouth to snap a 'no' at him, determined not to let him see her fear, she closed it, seeing the look on his face. It was almost... _pleading. _As if he were begging her not to be afraid. She thought back on the moment they shared before she was abruptly thrust overboard. She had been begging him for mercy, and he had looked as if he genuinely wanted to grant her that. So instead she said, "Stefan promised no one would hurt me."

He ignored that fact that she did not answer his question directly. "And you believe him?" He questioned.

"I believe that he believes that, but I also know better than to trust a band of criminals to leave me untouched."

With that statement, Elijah could see it then, the truth showing past her strong front. She _was_ afraid. Maybe not of Stefan and maybe not of Elijah, but there were nearly 40 other men on that ship. And she was right, they were criminals, and they were widely feared by men much bigger and deadlier than little Caroline.

He pushed off the wall he was leaning on and step forward to stand in front of her, "I promise you, Caroline, no one will touch you." He assured, meaning every word.

"And I believe that you believe that," she stated, recycling the same logic she had applied to Stefan's promises of safety, "but how can you ensure it?"

"These men are under my command. If I tell them to leave you be, they will leave you be."

"But there is one who isn't," she countered. "Can you promise he will leave me be as well?"

Elijah faltered. Truthfully, he knew he could not honestly make any promises regarding Klaus's behavior. "Klaus does not live by any rules but his own," he answered, knowing it was not the answer she wanted, but it was the only one he could give her. "And also," he paused, uncomfortable with what was about to occur.

"Also?" She prompted.

"He would like to speak to you," Elijah finished. "Alone."

* * *

Caroline stood before the intricately carved wooden door in a pair of breeches and a white linen shirt. She had been surprised that the clothes fit before she realized that they must have belonged to a young boy. She took a deep breath, and raised her hand to knock. However, before her fist could make contact with the wood, the door opened to reveal a man with sandy blonde hair and blue-green eyes.

"Caroline," he greeted, smiling, but Caroline felt there was something off about it. It was not a friendly smile. That was the kind of smile you could not trust. "Please, come in." He opened the door wider, gesturing inside with his other arm. She tentatively stepped inside, looking around the room. The first thing she noticed was the eery glow. It was dark out now, so the room was lit with the light of candles, which littered tables and shelves around the room, haphazardly dripping wax on books, jewels, and anything else the melted substance could find it's way to.

Next, she noticed his desk. Whatever he usually kept there had been cleared away, and the structure was now covered with a full meal. Caroline felt her heart rate go up at the sight of food, heard her stomach growl in response.

"Sit," he said, "You must be famished."

There it was again. The same thing Caroline caught behind his smile was now in his voice. _You must be famished._ It was not said with concern. It was a kind of amusement, but one Caroline did not fully understand. Silently, she walked to the desk and sat in the seat he pulled out for her.

"Tell me Caroline," he said as he sat in his seat across from her, "are you completely lacking in manners?"

Caroline's eyebrows shot up in disbelief, "Excuse me?" No one had ever insulted her etiquette before.

"You've not said a word since I invited you in, aside from those two. I just wonder if anyone ever taught you proper manners is all."

Caroline was practically seething now. She could not believe that a man such as this one, who lived off of others misery, could accuse her of being improper. "My propriety is not extended to the likes of you," she practically spat. "What is it you expect me to say?"

"Well you might start by expressing a bit of gratitude," he suggested.

Caroline's mouth fell open, she did not know whether to laugh or scream.

"Close your mouth, love," he instructed, "it's bad manners to leave it open. Never know what might fly in."

She ignored his comments and instead responded to his previous remark. "Gratitude?" She fumed, "What do I have to be thankful to you for?"

"I believe it was me who pulled you from the water when my brother threw you in, was it not?" He asked coolly, taking a bit of cheese.

At this point, Caroline completely forgot about the food and how hungry she was, and slammed the fork she was gripping onto the desk, standing angrily. "Yes, and I _believe_ it was you who ordered him to do so! Was it not?" She demanded, already aware that it was.

Klaus sighed tiredly, as if he were having to explain something to an incompetent child, which only led to fuel Caroline's rage. "Yes, and then I changed my mind. Let bygones be bygones. Now sit down, I know you're starving."

Caroline looked from Klaus to the food. She was absolutely boiling with rage, but he was right. She was starving. She closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths, which really did nothing to calm her, but she sat down, nevertheless and picked her fork back up, poking a piece of cheese and bringing it to her mouth. When Klaus said, "There's a good girl," she could not help but bite down hard on the utensil. Other than that, though, she ignored his remark and attempted to remain composed. After a few minutes of nothing but him watching her eat, Caroline could not take it anymore.

"Why are you looking at me that way?" She demanded.

"What way?" He asked.

"You are looking at me with a combination of both curiosity and contempt." She explained.

Klaus found himself mildly surprised by her perceptiveness. So she had wits about her, as well as what Klaus could not deny was a beautiful face. _Interesting_, he thought.

"Are you not afraid of me, Caroline?" He asked, ignoring her question.

"Hm," Caroline recognized the question from before. _Are you afraid of me, Caroline?_ Elijah had asked. Nearly the exact same words, but no where close to the same meaning. "Elijah asked me the same question."

"Ah, yes. Elijah," Klaus sat down his fork and readjusted himself in seat a bit. "You're right, Caroline, I am curious."

He was staring at her through slightly narrowed eyes with a look so intense that Caroline felt unable to maintain eye contact with him. "About what?" She asked, staring a piece of potato she was pushing around her plate.

"I want to know what you said to Elijah today." Klaus stated, getting straight to the point.

"I'm sorry?" Caroline's brows knitted together in confusion, not understanding what interest Klaus could have in what she said to Elijah.

"Here's the thing, Caroline," Klaus said, getting up from his seat, to walk around the desk as he continued talking, "my brother Elijah has stood my every decision without fail for six years now. And today, I told him that he was to provide you with food and water and then put you back in the water that you were pulled from." Caroline resisted the urge to ask why he would bother giving her food if he only planned to force her overboard moments later. "And when I left him, I left knowing that he would do exactly as I said." Klaus was pacing anxiously behind her now. "He was with you only a few moments, and yet when I saw him standing there by you on the deck, I could see his resolve crumble. I could see it all on his face. He went from having every intention of doing as I said to having every intention of doing the exact opposite." Klaus leaned down, bracing his hands on the arms of her chair from where he stood behind her. Caroline immediately tensed in response to his close proximity. "So I want you to tell me," he continued, and she could feel his warmth breath on her ear where his face was hovering too close for her comfort, "what did you say to him? How is it that in those few short minutes you managed to wedge yourself between my brother and me? How is that you made him abandon his years of loyalty to me, in favor of a girl he could not have had more than three minutes of conversation with?"

Caroline closed her eyed and took a deep breath. Klaus's voice was no longer laced with amusement. No, it was hostile and demanding. Even still, Caroline would not let him frighten her so easily. "And now I see where the contempt lies." She said, opening her eyes. She turned her face so that she could meet him head on. Their faces were so close she could feel his breath on her lips, and was sure he could feel hers as well. She stared straight into his eyes as she continued, "You hate me already because you're afraid that I might come between you and your brother. Well, there is a simple solution."

"Do tell," Klaus sneered.

"You can _release me_," Caroline hissed. "Problem solved."

"Right," Klaus chuckled, "release you." Without warning, his expression went from amusement to pure animosity, and he grabbed by the back of her neck, pulling her from the chair, and tugging her along as he stalked to the door, flinging it open.

"What are you doing?" Caroline strained against him, but he kept dragging her along.

"Giving you what you want." He marched on hurriedly and Caroline struggled to keep up with as she tried to pry his hand from her neck, but his grip was iron strong. They stopped at the side of the deck, and he whipped her around to face him, removing his hand from her neck and instead grabbing both of her wrists in one hand. Before she even had time to react, he scooped her legs out from underneath her with his other arm. "You wanted to be released," he said, and without further warning, he threw her over the side of the deck railing. But instead of hitting water, Caroline's back whacked against the outside of the ship and her arms, held above her, felt as if they had been ripped from her shoulders, causing her to cry out in pain.

Klaus was dangling her overboard, holding her up only by her wrists. "Is this not what you wanted?" He questioned. Caroline bit down on her lip, and felt her eyes watering. Her back stung from the force of it's contact with the side of the boat.

"Answer me, Caroline," he insisted, tugging on one of her arms, causing a searing pain to shoot from her shoulder through her whole are, smiling when she winced in pain.

"No," she grunted.

"No what?" He prompted.

"No, this is not what I wanted." She said, voice strained due to her position and all the pain it was causing.

"I'm sorry, I don't I quite heard that." Klaus teased.

"This is not what I wanted!" Caroline said, loud enough to please Klaus_. Anything to end this_, she thought.

But Klaus wasn't pleased, not yet. "What is it that you want?"

Caroline's feet scrambled to find a place on the side of the boat to lodge themselves into, anything to give her a shred of support and alleviate the pain in her arms and shoulders, but found nothing. "I want you to pull me up," she gave in, saying through gritted teeth what she knew Klaus wanted to hear.

And yet, Klaus was still not finished with his little game. "Where are your manners, Caroline?" He pretended to scold.

_Sick_, she thought, _sick bastard_. He was enjoying this, all of it- not only was he enjoying causing her physical pain, and not only was he enjoying making her ask for his help, no, he was going to make her _beg_ for it, and he was going to enjoy every second of it. But Caroline would not be so easily broken. She bit down on her lip and said nothing.

Klaus clicked his tongue in disapproval and quickly released one of Caroline's wrists. This time she was sure everyone on board could her outcry.

All of her weight was now dangling from her left arm that he held above her. Black dots began to cloud her vision and Caroline could no longer handle the pain.

"Please," she offered quietly.

"I can't hear you."

"Please!" She said louder.

"Yes, once more," he encouraged.

"PLEASE!" She begged, as loudly as she could, the desperation evident in her voice. She could taste the mixture of her salty tears and the blood that dripped from where she bit into her lip.

"Good girl," he smiled. Caroline did not even have enough strength left in her to be offended by his condescending tone.

He lifted her back up onto the ship and sat her on her feet. When she teetered, threatening to fall over, he put his hands on her shoulders to hold her up right.

"Now, I'll ask again," Klaus grabbed her jaw and forced her to look at him. "Are you not afraid of me, Caroline?"

_Are you afraid of me, Caroline?_

Nearly the exact same words, but no where close to the same meaning.

Elijah had asked hoping she would say no, he did not want her fear. Klaus asked believing that she would say yes. Wanting her fear, _needing_ it.

And for that reason, Caroline would not give it to him. He may have reduced her to begging, but she would not allow him to take this as well.

"I would sooner die than afford a man as vile as you the simple courtesy of seeing my fear."

Klaus's jaw clenched, "That does not answer the question."

"No," Caroline clarified, her voice edged with malice, "I am not, nor will I ever be, afraid of you."

Klaus stared at her, all signs of his pleasure from causing her pain now void from him. She matched his glare with one of equal coldness, refusing to cower from him.

"Very well," he said eventually, and called over Jeremy, a deckhand who was keeping watch that night and had witnessed the whole event. "Escort her back to Kol's room." He instructed.

"I can escort myself," Caroline insisted.

"You can hardly stand upright," Klaus reasoned.

"And whose fault is that?" She quipped.

"I will proudly take credit."

"You're disgusting."

"Perhaps," Klaus admitted without shame. "Go on now," he said, signaling the end of the conversation. Jeremy began to lead Caroline away, but when she stumbled over her footing, he chose to pick her up instead and carry her the rest of the way. When they arrived, Elijah was waiting inside.

"What happened?" He questioned immediately, rushing towards them.

"Klaus," was Jeremy's thickly accented reply (an accent Caroline did not recognize), as if that were explanation enough, and laid Caroline down on the bed.

"Thank you." She muttered, turning away from them and staring at the wall.

"Of course," Jeremy said, before walking out, "Good night."

"I'm so sorry, Caroline." Elijah whispered. She didn't respond, only curled further into herself. "Can I do anything for you?" He questioned, wanting to help.

"You can leave," Caroline responded simply. She did not blame Elijah for what Klaus did, but she needed to be alone. Elijah seemed to hesitate, but eventually he did leave.

When Caroline heard the door shut softly, a tear immediately slipped down her face, unable to be contained any longer. It was followed by another, and another, and many more, until Caroline felt she had run out of tears. And then those were followed by twice as many as before. Still, not even all of those tears, or possibly all of the tears in the world, could express what Caroline was feeling. She had lied. She was afraid of Klaus. She had felt more fear in her short time with him than in all of the previous frightening moments of her life combined. Not necessarily because she was afraid of how he so easily hurt, or how he could easily kill her, but because she was afraid that she would never make it back home. With every tear that fell, Caroline thought about someone or something else she would likely never lay eyes on again. She thought long and hard on her father, tried to memorize every line of his face, the way he smiled whenever she did something that made him proud. She thought about Bonnie, the curve in her lips and the glint in her eyes she had when she was happiest. Her thoughts landed on Elena, and the soft giggle that would tumble out of her when she was delighted. She thought of her mother. Oh, her mother. She thought of Eliza Forbes' warm smile, her loving gaze. She thought of her mother pointing up at the stars, tracing out the constellations. She tried to recall every memory of her mother she had, every moment they ever shared. Played them through her mind again and again, until she was sure she would never be able to forget. Then she thought again of her father, and listed all his good qualities in her mind, forcing herself to remember who he was, _loving father, strong leader, loving father, strong leader. _She thought of her childhood home, the view of the ocean from the docks, the forests that rested just outside of the bustle of the city. She played these images in her mind over and over, allowing them to lull her to sleep.

And all through the night, not even in her slumber, did Caroline release her tight grasp on the blue stone that rested in the space between her collarbones.

* * *

_Next: Elijah keeps Caroline company, and Klaus keeps an angry eye on her from a distance. Stefan finally reveals the truth about why he ran away mysteriously and how he ended up on this ship. As they make their way to New Providence in order to pay someone a visit, Caroline becomes acquainted with some of the crew members, and feels torn in her beliefs. Once the spirits begin to flow in New Providence and everyone ends up running separate ways, what kind of trouble will Caroline find herself in?_

* * *

**A/N: So, they finally met. I promise this isn't going to be a Klaroline/Carlijah triangle. The relationship between Caroline and Elijah will ****_not_**** be a romantic one. Anyway, shoot me a review, I'd love to hear what you think. (To clear up any confusion, the Jeremy mentioned here is NOT Jeremy Gilbert. This is another of my original characters, who just happens to have the same name as Little Gilbert).**

**Who's excited for The Originals tonight?! BTW, you can find me on tumblr at curtlemons if you like. I'll probably start posting stuff about this on there, and if you have any questions you can ask me there and stuff.**


	4. Repetitive Motion

**A/N: I'm the worst (sorry about the wait) and I need a beta (sorry about any mistakes). Anyway, things to keep in mind: the Jeremy in this fic is not Jeremy Gilbert, it's a different, original character with the same name. Little Gilbert will not be in this story. Caroline's mother is not Liz from canon, but Eliza from my imagination. I recreated her. (disclaim disclaim disclaim blah blah)**

* * *

**IV:****Repetitive Motion****:IV**

_Take a deep breath, suck the water in my chest  
Cross my fingers and hope for the best  
(Florence+TheMachine)_

Caroline woke with a start. As she sat in the bed trying to calm her labored breathing she went over the events of the unusual dream she had just come from. She did not remember much. Her mother had been there, as well as her father, and Stefan- but there was something about his face, it had been shadowed from her view. She remembered feeling torn. And then falling. Falling? Yes, falling. There was an earthquake, and a split in the ground between herself and her father, and Bill was telling Caroline that she had to throw Stefan in. Caroline could not understand why, but he said it had something to do with the way his face looked. Bill kept telling her, "You have to throw him in!" But Caroline could not do it, she could not send someone she had once considered such a close friend to his death. Bill told her to throw Stefan in once more, and once more Caroline refused. And then she was falling, down into the crack, because she was pushed- by her father.

* * *

For the next several hours, Caroline sat in her temporary room, doing and redoing the few knots she knew. In her time with Trevor she had learned three- the whipping knot, the fisherman's knot, and the gallows knot. The whipping knot was used to keep rope from unraveling. The fisherman's knot was to combine two pieces of rope together. The gallows knot was relatively self explanatory- used for hanging. For hours, she lay on her back, tying, untying, then tying again, and then untying again. She focused on the loops, the length of the short rope. She focused on the twists of the hemp. The roughness of the material. She focused on how sore it was making her hands, the hurt. Anything to stop her focusing on the thoughts she fought to keep pushed away. The things that actually hurt.

Caroline did not think of her father. _Cross over to form loop._ She did not think of her mother. _Tuck end under_. She did not think of Mystic Falls- _loop over cross-_ or the feel of dry land under her feet_._ _Tuck under loop. _She did not think of the forest just outside of town- _loop under cross-_ or the caves and tunnels that ran through the underground. _Bring end up through cross_. She did not think of Elena, or Bonnie, or even Damon. _Pull to tighten_.She did not think of Elijah, of how comfortable she felt around him. She did not think about the fact that she felt compelled to believe that he was a good, honest man, because how could he be? He was a pirate, and her father had taught her what it meant to be a pirate, and what kind of daughter would she be if she disregarded her's father words upon her first opportunity for an unexplainable feeling that held no formidable grounds? No, she did not think of that.

Then- _tug_- and the whole knot unravels, ready to be done again, and again, and again, until every loop and cross is so ingrained in Caroline's mind that her hands could very well continue the pattern even in death.

But she doesn't ready the rope for another knot, she doesn't loop, or tuck, or cross. Because of all the things she is not thinking, there is one thing that she _is_ thinking- that keeps popping to the forefront of her mind that she can't ignore.

_Where is Stefan? _

The last time she saw him was yesterday, after Klaus pulled her from the water. Stefan had brought her to this room, held a very brief conversation with her in which he promised she would be safe, then left. _Stefan_. Caroline could hardly believe he was here, her old friend whom she had missed sorely since his disappearance four years ago. She wondered how he had even ended up here, on a pirate ship. Was he a prisoner as well? Similar to her? Had the men on this ship been responsible for his father's death, and then kidnapped Stefan as well? If so, then that would mean Stefan had been a hostage for four years. _Four years. _The thought unsettled Caroline; she did not want to be held captive on this ship for that long. Was that her future as well?

As Caroline thought back, it was brought to her attention that Stefan had been very vague in their short conversation last night. He did not explain much of anything and left very quickly. At the time, she had been in a bit of shock, and had been very numb to everything happening around her. But now that she was thinking more clearly, she found his distance strange. If she had been hostage for four years, and a close friend suddenly appeared in her place of captivity, she would spend as much time with that person as she could. Caroline would have so many questions, so much to say. Yet Stefan was very brief, and asked her no questions of his home or his brother before leaving her.

Now, Caroline could only assume it was nearly midday and she had been sitting down here on her own since she woke. Caroline thought he would have come see her, whether just to check on her, or to talk to her, or... _anything_.

But no. She had been alone for hours, no visitors. Caroline supposed she could leave her room; she had not been locked in. But she did not know her way back to the deck, and she did not like the idea of turning the wrong corner and finding herself cornered by the immoral men that inhabited the ship. Yes, both Stefan and Elijah had promised her safety. However, had that not been just moments before she found herself hanging overboard, supported by her wrists? Caroline's shoulders were still sore, sorer than she had ever been in her life. When she tried to lift her arms that morning, she found she could not raise them higher than shoulder-height without experiencing unbearable pain. She also had bruises on her wrists in the shape of Klaus's hands, and she could not see her neck, but assumed that there were likely marks there as well.

But Caroline could not simply sit in this room anymore. This enclosed space, with nothing to pass the time but a piece of rope. So she looked around the room and, spotting a large knife that lay on the desk, picked it up, testing the feel of it her hands for a moment. Caroline had never held a weapon before, but she supposed this would do just fine. Mind you, she had no intention to use it; Caroline was not sure she could bring herself to stab someone. She really only felt the need to carry it in attempt to try and scare anyone from even trying to harm her. So she held the large, curved blade by the handle and put her other hand on the doorknob. Just two seconds later, Caroline could have thanked her nerves for causing her to have such a tight grip, because when an unexpected knock came from the door, she nearly dropped the deadly blade on her foot.

Opening the door cautiously, Caroline saw standing on the other side a man of very dark skin with a red cloth wrapped around his head. She remembered him as the man who had brought her to this room after her unfortunate meeting with Klaus. He stood there with an apple and three biscuits.

"I saw that you had not come from your room, and no one else had been down to see you. I thought you must be hungry," he said in his accented voice.

"Oh," Caroline said. She had not known who she was expecting to be on the other side of the door. Perhaps Klaus, or Stefan, maybe even Elijah. "Thank you."

His eye's drifted down and she followed his gaze to the knife in her hand. She flushed in embarrassment, "That's, uh, I was just-"

"I am not here to hurt you, Caroline." Jeremy interrupted, understanding why she might be holding onto the blade. "I just wanted to bring you food."

Caroline thought back to the night before, and the fact that he had carried her to this room. He had not made her walk, despite that she was weak and tired. He had carried her, and without her even asking. She figured he must not be like Klaus- someone who enjoys seeing other people hurt- and chose to believe him.

"Ok," she nodded, and opened the door further so he could step inside. He sat the food on the desk, and Caroline put the knife down on her bed. "Thank you... Jeremy," Caroline said, remembering the name Klaus had called him by. "I know I already said that but, it was very nice of you."

Jeremy shrugged, "Of course. Well, I have work to do."

"You're leaving?" Caroline winced internally at the desperation in her voice, but she was so terribly bored, and Jeremy did not seem too awful. She would not have minded his company.

"Yes," he responded, and noticing the disappointment on her face added, "but I can come back later once I'm done."

"Actually," Caroline said, another idea coming to mind, "could I go with you? I mean, out there." She pointed past the chamber's door. "If I stay in this room any longer I may suffocate."

Jeremy chuckled, "Yes, you can come. I don't know that you will be much more entertained up there than you are down here."

Caroline smiled widely, overjoyed that she was finally getting out of this space after hours in the cabin alone. She glance nervously to the blade, wondering if she should take it along.

"I don't think you'll be needing that," Jeremy chuckled. "Everyone is under strict orders to treat you properly. You have nothing to worry about."

Caroline frowned, recognizing the words that had already been recited to her twice before, "Right, nothing to worry about. Except the evil, violent, malicious man you all serve."

"Yes," Jeremy sighed, leading Caroline out of the room, "except him."

* * *

Thankfully, Klaus was not out on the deck as Caroline watched Jeremy do his work. She neither knew nor cared where Klaus might be, as long as she was as far away from him as possible. At first, Caroline wanted to help Jeremy with what he was doing, but it wasn't before too long that the ropes left her hands raw and burning, so she resigned to simply watching and listening to him explain. Caroline only saw Stefan once that day, and when she approached him, he quickly said that he had duties to attend to on one of the lower decks, and walked away briskly without another word.

Later that day when Elijah emerged from one of the lower decks and saw Caroline smiling and trying to learn the words to a song Trevor was singing, he came up to her, questioning her mood.

"I don't understand. How can you be so positive? You're away from your home, your family. You're being held as a hostage, and yet you smile and sing."

"You're right," Caroline responded. "I'm away from everything and everyone I hold dear, with no inkling as to what my future holds for me. I could die tomorrow. I could never see my home again. And I could sit in that dark room and cry over it, but the fact is, the sun will shine whether I come out to see it or not. So why not enjoy it while I can?" Caroline added gently, "And I don't believe that you don't understand that. I think you do, better than most."

"What makes you say that?" Elijah inquired.

"You're too honest, Elijah, too good. I have hardly spent any time with you and already I can see that. Am I to believe that you chose this life of dishonesty and thievery? No, I believe that you live this way for Klaus." Elijah was stunned by her observation, and found himself speechless at her deductions. She looked at him sympathetically and glanced to the floor, adding softly. "I know what it means to feel caught between your love for someone and your disapproval of everything they are."

Before Elijah had the chance to ask Caroline to elaborate on what she meant by that, he was called away by an agitated-sounding Klaus.

Caroline spent the rest of the day with Jeremy and Trevor, and was introduced to a few of the other crew members. Everyone followed their apparent orders, and treated her properly. They were even friendly. Everyone except Kol, that is. The one time Caroline encountered him that day, he sneered at her and was very crude in his remarks. Caroline suspected it had everything to do with the fact that she was occupying his room for the time. Aside from that, Caroline's day went by without any disturbing or frightening occurrences. The men of the ship were full of intriguing stories, and whenever they weren't talking, they were singing. Caroline tried to keep up, but there were so many songs. She wondered how they could possibly remember the words to all of them. The food was far from the prepared meals that she grew up on, but the spirited banter of the men was enough to distract her from the bland fare.

As the sun went down, Caroline made her way back to her cabin. Now that she felt confident no one would harm her, she was no longer afraid to walk alone. There was only one person she had to fear, and seeing as he was captain, no number of escorts could protect her from him. She spotted Elijah walking towards her and waved politely.

"Caroline," he smiled.

"E-_li_-jah," she sang, skipping to the tune that the men had been singing as they all ate their supper, and Elijah laughed lightly at her little dance.

"Are you laughing at me? How rude," she teased, playfully.

"Forgive me," Elijah said, ceasing his laughter but still smiling, "I'm just in complete awe of your spirit. I am still shocked by it."

"Yes," Caroline agreed, her smile slipping from her face as her hand came up to absently hold the pendant at her neck, "so am I."

"What do you mean?" Elijah asked.

"Have you seen Stefan today?" Caroline inquired, ignoring Elijah's question. She did not want to voice the conflicting thoughts she was having at the moment.

"Er," Elijah blinked, confused by the sudden change of subject. "I suppose, I've crossed his path a few times today. Why do you ask?"

"I have the strangest feeling that he is avoiding me." Caroline murmured, looking into the distance as the tried to figure why Stefan would be doing such a thing, continuing to toy with her necklace as she thought.

"Why would he do that?"

"I haven't the slightest. How did Stefan come to be on this ship?" She asked, "If he is a prisoner as well, then perhaps he is being kept away from me."

"Well," Elijah answered, "I can assure you he is no prisoner. He is a free and willing member, just as everyone else on this ship-"

_Aside from me,_ Caroline thought.

"But as for how he came to be here," Elijah continued, "you would have to ask Niklaus. I do not know the specifics, only that Niklaus brought him aboard several years ago."

"Hm," Caroline hummed, trying to figure out the years of Stefan's life after his disappearance, but finding she did not know anything except that he was here now, and had been for the majority of the four years since she last saw him. "Speaking of avoiding people," Caroline shifted topics once more, "where have _you_ been all day?"

"Niklaus has kept me unusually busy, with a series of trivial and mundane tasks since he called me away from you earlier today."

Caroline nodded, understanding that Klaus must have done this just to keep Elijah away from her. Whether just to annoy Elijah, or Caroline, or because he was still worried about her creating a rift between them, she did not know.

By now, the pair had reached her bedroom, and bid each other goodnight before Caroline retreated inside the room and Elijah walked off to his own.

That night as Caroline lay in bed, she wrestled with her thoughts. Yes, she had enjoyed her day. Actually _enjoyed_ it. That very enjoyment was the point of cause for the conflict she was feeling now. She should be disgusted by these men. She should be cursing them until her voice was gone and her throat raw. But no, she sat with them, talked with them, listened to them. And in listening to them she learned about them. She learned that more than thieves and murderers, more than horror stories recited to her as a child, they were people.

And there lied the second point of conflict. Yes, they were people, but still pirates.

So was she to treat them as such? As the criminals they actively were? Or was she too choose to see more?

Despite the warring taking place inside Caroline's mind, the day had tired her, and she soon slipped from her thoughts into a deep sleep, never quite coming to a settlement on how she felt.

* * *

_Next- Chapter 5: The Modern Prometheus_

* * *

**A/N: Wow short chapter. But fear not I'm almost done with the next so it should be up in no time at all. As always, thanks for reading and please review. Your comments fuel my fire! And if you like you can find me on tumblr at curtlemons. tumblr. com**

**foreshadow: to show or indicate beforehand *wink wink*  
**


	5. The Modern Prometheus

**A/N: Yay, just changed the story's genre from 'Adventure' to 'Adventure/Romance'! We are getting there people, even when it doesn't seem like it, haha.**

* * *

**V:The Modern Prometheus:V**

_I am malicious because I am miserable.  
__(Frankenstein:MaryShelley)__  
_

Klaus glanced quickly away from the map he was looking at to the main deck, where Trevor was teaching Caroline more about sailing. Klaus had to admit, he was surprised. He expected that after his treatment of her, Caroline would keep to the room she was put in, too afraid to come out. When he came out that morning to see her on deck, eating an apple and following Trevor around as he did his morning routine, it surprised him, but Klaus shook the thoughts of Caroline from his mind and returned to his discussion with Finn, "So, as I was saying, we need to make way for New Providence. I believe there is someone there who will be expecting us soon."

"Hm," Finn hummed, marking down coordinates and such in the navigation charts. "Adrian, this book is almost full. I'll need you to fetch me another." Adrian nodded and stepped away from the wheel, making way to Finn's cabin where all of the navigational supplies were kept.

"Are you even listening to me?" Klaus demanded. He needed a distraction right now, and Finn was not providing well. He realized he should have known better than to come to the dullest person he knew for that.

"Yes, Niklaus, I am hearing every word you say," Finn responded, his voice laced with irritation. Still he did not look up from his charts. He dipped his quill into the ink bottle and continued scratching away, "If anything, I would say you are the one who is not fully invested in this conversation."

Klaus ignored Finn's observation of Klaus's distracted state. "This isn't a conversation, Finn. This is me talking as you ignore me."

"No, Niklaus, this is you talking to me while you dart glances at the blonde woman following Trevor around on deck, as I listen to everything you say and mark down our navigational progress so that I can do what it is you're asking. This is you looking for something to take your mind off whatever has you so worked up. Well, I'm not your distraction. Go find Stefan or another of your worshiping lapdogs. I have work to do and no time to entertain you as well."

Klaus gritted his teeth in frustration. Finn was too observant for Klaus's liking. Being the quiet, uninvolved man he was meant that he noticed nearly everything- a skill Klaus might appreciate if Finn did not turn it on him so often. In times like these, Klaus would like nothing better than to rip Finn's heart straight from his chest and force it down his throat. His tolerance for Finn's ever sour attitude seemed to be in a constant state of almost empty.

"You can tell Jeremy how to set the sails." Klaus instructed as he walked away.

"Why not Trevor?" Finn asked. Trevor was, after all, the boatswain, which put him in charge over Jeremy.

"I have other purposes for Trevor today," Klaus replied cryptically, stepping down from the quarterdeck and making a straight, purposeful line for the aforementioned crew member and giggling blonde at his side.

* * *

"No, it's true," Trevor said, smiling widely, "got his ankle right tangled up in the anchor rope."

Caroline laughed at the image, "Well what happened then?"

"Well he'd already sent it over and no one could get to him fast enough, so he went down with it. By the time we got it back up he was already dead."

If that wasn't enough to suck the amusement right out of Caroline, the sight of Klaus approaching them certainly was. She immediately tensed and Klaus couldn't help but smirk. She may have refused to show fear, but her discomfort was obvious. He noticed one of her hands fly up to her necklace, tugging on the pendant lightly, flinching when it made contact with the sensitive leftovers of the violent events from two nights previous.

"Trevor, mate, how are you this morning?" Klaus asked jovially enough to make Trevor a bit suspicious. He was only that cheerful after a particularly successful heist.

"Er, I'm well. Yourself?"

"Fine, I'm fine. I see you're enjoying the company of our guest, Caroline."

"I think hostage might be a better term, or prisoner." Caroline intervened.

Klaus's face immediately hardened and he looked towards her with the same measure of malice he held the last time they spoke. "Are you in a cell, Caroline? No, you're walking around _my_ deck, eating _my_ food, sleeping in _my_ brother's bed." Caroline began to shift uncomfortably, recognizing that look in his eyes. The very one he possessed right before dragging her by her neck and hanging her over the water by her wrists. She realized it might have been better had she just stayed silent, but silence had never exactly been her strong suit. "I could hand you over to my men and let them have their way with you," he continued. Klaus took a step towards her and she instinctively leaned back. "I could have locked you up and starved you of food." He picked up her hand with a surprising gentleness. "I could cut off each of your pretty little fingers, just for sport," he threatened, as he picked them each up, one by one. Klaus looked back up to her face and dropped her hand, leaning in close, so that they were effectively nose to nose. Caroline tried to suppress the shiver that ran through her as she once again found herself in unsettling proximity to Klaus. "You are in so position to complain, love. In fact, you should be thanking me for my hospitality. Because if I catch wind of you expressing so much as a shred of ungratefulness again," he looked straight into her eyes, "I will give you a reason to do so. Are we understood?"

When Caroline failed to respond, terror halting any words in her throat, he smiled and stepped away. "Now, Trevor," he said to the man as if nothing out of the ordinary had just occurred, "my cabin is a mess and I need you to go clean it up."

Trevor looked confused at Klaus's request, "Why don't you just get one of the seamen to do it?"

"Because I told you to do it, did I not?" Klaus said, the demanding undertone of his voice warning Trevor not to protest again.

"Uh, right, of course," Trevor stuttered, "I'll just-" he looked around for a deck hand close by but everyone was busy. "Um-" Trevor looked at the rope in his hand, then up to Klaus, and one glance at his face was enough to have Trevor dropping the rope and scampering off to the captain's quarters.

* * *

Trevor did not talk to Caroline for the rest of the day, which she did not hold against him. He did, however, shoot her apologetic smiles whenever he saw her. They both understood that the only reason Klaus made Trevor clean his room was because Trevor was talking to Caroline. Given Klaus's disdain for her, it figured he would want her to be as miserable as possible. The warning was understood by all who saw, and word quickly spread. After that, the crew was just as polite to Caroline as before, but no one would engage in conversation with her. Caroline did not blame them though, they were only trying to avoid Trevor's fate of an extra workload.

With Elijah otherwise occupied, and Stefan still mysteriously absent, Caroline found herself alone and bored. To keep herself occupied, she wandered the ship. Caroline found that there were four levels. The main deck was the first level. On the second level was the gun deck, where canons and ammunition were stored. Kol's, Finn's, and Elijah's cabins were also on the second level. On the third was the berth, where the rest of the men slept. The kitchen was on this level as well. When exploring the area, Caroline found where they kept chickens on the ship, but didn't linger with them since they did nothing but peck at her fingers. Caroline found the fourth level to be the most interesting. It consisted of several rooms, only one of which she had time to explore because it was so full of... stuff. Caroline could not think of any other way to describe the collection of seemingly random items. There were books, jewels, clothing, paintings, card decks, swords, and various other things. Upon inspecting a jewelry box, Caroline found a beautiful, diamond encrusted bracelet. She held it up to get a closer look. The room was dark, save for the candle burning next to her, and each time the light hit one of the diamonds, it would glint, sending a small shot of light across the room.

"Do you like it?"

Caroline jumped at the sudden voice behind her and whipped around to see Klaus standing a few paces behind her, his hands clasped behind his back. For a moment, she said nothing. Just looked at him, waiting for him to speak again- perhaps to scold her for being down here, or bestow her with yet another promise of pain, since Caroline felt that was all he seemed capable of doing, after all.

But when he stayed quiet, waiting for her answer, she nodded lightly and turned back in the direction she had previously been facing. Perhaps she was foolish to turn her back on him, but it was a better alternative than having to see him. Caroline did not want to have to look at Klaus's face, that face that smiled as he forced her to beg for mercy. Also, his expression was different than before, calmer, it seemed. He was not looking at her with the coldness he expressed in their previous encounters. His voice was not laced with the hostility she thought to expect from him. If Caroline did not know what kind of man he was, she might think that he was being nice. But knowing fully well what kind of man he truly was, she doubted that he was capable of that.

"It's beautiful," she said quietly, staring intently at the bracelet. It was perhaps the most beautiful thing she had ever seen. She cleared her throat and set the bracelet back inside the box. Yes, it was beautiful, but it was also a result of thievery.

Caroline turned to face Klaus and crossed her arms over her chest, "And whose throat was sliced in order for you to obtain it?"

Klaus smiled, "What makes you think I stole it?"

Caroline scoffed, "I am not stupid. I know what this room is."

"And what's that?"

"A treasure chest," Caroline stated, looking around, "of sorts." She picked up a tiara that was sitting crookedly on top of a wooden table alongside a pile of precious jewels. "I doubt this belonged to any of your men at some time."

Klaus chuckled, "Yes, nearly everything in this room is stolen. In fact, this entire floor is, as you so eloquently put it, a treasure chest... of sorts. Except," he walked past her, brushing against her shoulder, and reopened the jewelry box to pick up the bracelet Caroline had been inspecting, " for this."

"What do you mean? Do not tell me you paid for it."

"No, I didn't, but that does not mean it was stolen." He tilted his head and ran his thumb over the item, "It was a gift."

Caroline narrowed her eyes, "Who would gift a man with women's jewelry?"

"I'm afraid that's a story for another time," Klaus said, placing the bracelet back in the box. "I'd actually like to ask you a few questions, if you don't mind."

Caroline tensed. The last time Klaus had wanted to "ask her a few questions," she ended up with black and blue wrists and incredibly sore shoulders.

"No reason to be concerned, I promise I won't lose my temper this time," he said, "as long as you lovely reminders on your wrists of what happens when you don't."

Caroline had the strongest urge to slap Klaus in that moment. However, in an act of self-preservation, she only balled her fists at her sides and took a long, deep breath. Klaus took a seat on a chaise nearby and motioned for her to do the same. Not wanting to be too close to him, she chose to sit in a chair a few feet away.

"So," she looked around nervously. Klaus said he wanted to ask her something, yet he was saying nothing, only watching her intently. "What can I help you with?"

"Your last name is Forbes, is it not?"

Caroline's brows came together in confusion, "How did you know that? I didn't tell that to anyone." It occurred to Caroline that there was only one other person here who knew her last name. "Did Stefan tell you?"

"In a way, yes." Caroline's mention of Stefan reminded Klaus that it had been the Salvatore who told him Caroline's full name, and he found himself wondering about their history. "I'm curious, how is that you and Stefan know each other."

"We grew up together," Caroline said. Klaus did not miss the slight upturning of her lips and fondness in her eyes when she spoke of her past with Stefan. There was an unmistakable adoration in her voice.

"Grew up together? That's it?"

Caroline narrowed her eyes again, "Stefan was my best friend, that's all." She sighed and looked past him at nothing in particular. "To be honest, I always felt as though he and Elena would end up together."

"Elena?" Klaus questioned.

"Mhm," Caroline nodded, "another best friend of mine. And of course Bonnie."

"Well, I can see arithmetic isn't your strong suit."

"Excuse me?"

"You just named three different people as your best friend. It seems to me that's a title that could only be bestowed on one."

Caroline rolled her eyes, "Well, _I _can see that friendship isn't _your_ strong suit." She retorted.

"What need would I have of them? I have everything I could possibly want. I have power, a band of loyal men. I have my family. I don't need friends."

"Yes, you do." Caroline argued.

"Again I ask, what good are they to me?"

"You know, you may _think_ you have everything you want, but I think we both know that's not true. If you truly did, you wouldn't be so miserable."

Klaus let out a dry, unamused laugh. "I can assure you love, I'm far from miserable."

"No, you are extremely miserable. In fact, you may be the most miserable person I've ever met. And I know that because you want everyone else to be miserable too. You _hate_ that I can come out on the deck of the ship where I'm being held hostage and smile. It drives you mad that I am not in my room wallowing, crying in self-pity." Caroline voice was reaching dangerous levels now and Klaus face was becoming more hardened by the second, but she was too far to stop. Caroline stood from her seated position, "You even want Elijah to be miserable- your brother! God forbid you set aside your own selfish desires and allow him a chance at happiness, right?"

Klaus in turn shot up and stared her in the face, "I will not be lectured by you on the relationship between Elijah and me!"

"Oh, relationship? Is that what you call it?" Caroline challenged. "I should hardly consider what you have to be a relationship."

"And what is it that you think Elijah and I have?" Klaus spat. "What is your great insight into our bond?"

"I think you are a self serving ego maniac with a taste for destruction, and your brother is too good a man to leave you to this doomed life alone. So he selflessly follows you around, dragging behind you, down the paths you burn through, cleaning up your messes as if you are an immature child." Caroline shook her head. "Family," she scoffed, "I could question if you really care for them at all. Because, eventually, you will be the end of them." Caroline turned and made to walk out of the room, until Klaus reached out and grabbed her by her upper arm, twisting her back in his direction and pulling her dangerously close. "You know _nothing_ of my family," he fumed.

"Let go of me," Caroline said through gritted teeth.

Klaus dropped her arm and she took a step back before shaking her head at him, "You are positively the most pathetic excuse of a man I have ever seen."

With that, Klaus grabbed Caroline shoulders and slammed her into a stack of boxes nearby, wrapping one hand tightly around her throat. "I have _every_ reason to be miserable!" He shouted. "What do _you_ know, pretty, young, perfect Caroline Forbes? Daughter of a governor? What do _you_ know of misery? What kind of anguish could your comfortable little life have delivered to you?"

"More than you know," Caroline wheezed through the tight grip that was currently constricting her windpipes.

After that, they simply stared each other down. Caroline refusing to look away, or ask for mercy. Klaus refusing to let her go, yet at the same time refusing to tighten his grip to the point where he could actually kill her. Even when Stefan burst into the room and saw the situation at hand- Caroline backed against a stack of boxes, Klaus's hand at her throat- and asked what was going on, they still did not break their gazes.

"Klaus..." Stefan said in a very careful voice, seeming to understand the delicate and dangerous situation at hand.

With that, the lock Caroline and Klaus had on each other was broken. Klaus closed his eyes for a moment, looked over to Stefan, down to the ground, and back to Caroline, jaw ticking in frustrated contemplation. With one last glare, he let go of her throat and stormed out of the room, saying nothing, pushing violently past Stefan on his way out.

Caroline rubbed her neck and Stefan stepped towards her, "Are you alright?" He asked.

Caroline supposed she could have said thank you, but really, she was too full of anger at the moment to express what she thought to be unnecessary gratitude.

"Where have you been?" She demanded angrily.

Stefan's eyebrows went up in surprise, "Pardon?"

_Of course_, Caroline thought. He had been expecting gratitude. _Well, he's not going to get it, _she decided. "I have been on this ship for three days now, and in that time you have spoken to me only once! I am not a fool, Stefan Salvatore, I know when someone is avoiding me!"

"Look, Caroline-"

"No, do not 'look Caroline' me," she mocked in his voice. She took a breath and lowered her voice to a more conversational level, "I am a prisoner, Stefan." Tears began to pool in her eyes. "I'm here... as a prisoner. And in my three days a such, not a single one has gone by without my life being threatened. And that's not even the hardest part of being here. The hardest part is the fact that I am completely _alone_. You were my best friend." Stefan closed his eyes and looked to the ground. "And I thought I'd never see you again, and yet, here you are. Which is... incredible. It's amazing, truly. And yet, you treat me as a stranger. And I don't understand it, but I need a friend right now, Stefan."  
"Caroline-"

"I need a friend," she continued, stopping him from speaking. "And you are just that to me, you always have been. So, as your friend, I want you to tell me where you've been these past four years. I want you to tell me what happened and why you left Mystic Falls."

"Why?" Stefan inquired. "Why do you need to know?"

"Because, that's what friends are for. So, you tell me what I have missed, and I will tell you the same."

* * *

_Next: (Chapter 6- Let The Flames Begin): Stefan's reveals his secret past to Caroline, and Klaus and Caroline find themselves alone again, but will the encounter end with threats and violence as they typically do? Or will the pair finally share a nice moment? Elijah confronts Klaus about Caroline, and makes a request that Klaus is all to eager to refuse, which only results in driving the two brothers farther apart._

* * *

**A/N: WOW, I know I've said before that I'm thankful for your reviews, but I don't think you guys realize just how much I truly appreciate them! I want to go ahead and thank individually every one of you who has left me a review so far:**

**brighteyescoldheart, suzypyong, DELENAfan97, HelloCutePanda, anie1223, MoriartyAndHisTardis, evansrachel2282. **

**And especially those of you who have left multiple reviews:**

**minty4794, Aaaammber, Felicia1975, and klaroline-wonderland**

**And obviously also everyone who has followed and favorited! As always, you can find me on tumblr at curtlemons**


	6. Let The Flames Begin

**A/N: Eek! I am so excited because this is my very first beta'd chapter! You can all thank the lovely Emily (minty4794) for her impeccable editing skills :)**

* * *

**VI:Let The Flames Begin:VI**

_What a shame  
We all became such fragile, broken things  
(Paramore)_

As it turned out, Giuseppe Salvatore had not been killed by pirates or criminals or anything of the sort. As it turned out, he had been killed by his own son, Stefan Salvatore. Accidentally, of course.

Stefan painfully told Caroline the story of the day his father turned up dead and he vanished from town. The two were having an argument about Stefan and Damon's future, about the difference between what Giuseppe wanted from them and what they wanted for themselves. When Stefan attempted to walk away and Giuseppe grabbed his shoulder, Stefan instinctively pushed him away. Giuseppe stumbled backwards and tripped over his own feet, the back of his head banging against the corner of his desk as he fell. The blow killed him immediately.

Ridden with shame and fear, Stefan hopped on a cargo ship and hid there, not caring where it was going, just desperate to get as far away as he could. He ended up in New Providence, where he spent most of his nights drunk and passed out on the streets. It was there, a year later, that he met Klaus in a tavern and told him that he had once been the son of a man who owned a shipyard. Klaus, having just lost a handful of men in a particularly brutal heist, offered Stefan a place on his ship. With nowhere else to go, Stefan accepted.

"So, now you know." Stefan said. He was seated in a chair, his arms resting on his knees with his hands clasped and head hanging low.

"Stefan," Caroline whispered, asshe didn't quite know what to say. She had remained quiet through the whole story, totally captivated. Now that it was over, she was positively speechless. "I am _so_ sorry."

"No, you don't need to be sorry," Stefan shook his bowed head. "You did nothing wrong. It was all me. I am at fault for what happened, no one else."

"Don't say that. It wasn't your fault."

"Then whose was it?" Stefan questioned, harsher than he intended to.

"No one's," Caroline answered. "It was just... unfortunate circumstances."

"Unfortunate circumstances," he repeated quietly.

Caroline looked at her friend sadly. _How did this happen?_ She wondered. The last time she had seen Stefan, they had been laughing, smiling.

They had been happy.

Pirates only existed in her father's stories, not as the people they slept next to, ate their meals with. Bruises were the result of falling out of carriages, they were not inflicted by others. Tears came from laughing too hard, not from mourning fathers and feeling guilt. Caroline sat there now, holding on to Stefan's hands, eyes clenched shut, tears falling in silence. _How did this happen to us?_

* * *

Klaus sat casually in his chair, sharpening his favorite blade as Elijah stood across the desk from him, providing Klaus with a report on the status of the ship and crewmen. It seemed everything was well, until Elijah finished by reporting that one of the men had fallen ill.

"Who is it?" He inquired.

"Arthur."

Klaus let out a displeased 'hmph.' "I could laugh at the irony if it were not such an inconvenience." Arthur was their medic, of sorts, the closest thing they had to a doctor, and his skills were often useful, as the men did not have prime living conditions and were likely to fall sick or be injured in a fight.

"How bad is it?"

"It began yesterday," Elijah responded, a small line of concern etched across his forehead. "Mild dizziness every now again, in addition to nausea. This morning he woke with a migraine and a fever that has been progressing since. He says he's taken something for it and is now resting. He believes it to be a passing thing, but advised an inspection of the food just in case."

"Alright," Klaus nodded. He then spoke to Trevor, who stood beside Elijah, "I want you to supervise the inspection, and ensure that it's thorough."

Trevor nodded, "And what of Arthur?" He asked.

Klaus pondered for only a short moment on how to handle the situation before deciding. "Let him rest. If it is a passing thing, it should be through his system in two, three days time. If not, we can send him to a doctor wherever we dock next." Arthur was an important asset on the ship and Klaus wanted him to get well, so that he would not have to undergo the task of finding a new medic willing to join the ranks of pirates. Forcing someone was possible, but could also end poorly. An unwilling medic was more likely to intentionally infect the crew with illnesses, instead of heal them. He then added as an after thought, "But have him moved into Kol's room, the last thing I need is for it to spread and end up with half my crew indisposed."

"Caroline is currently staying in Kol's room," Trevor reminded him.

Klaus groaned. For one blissful moment, he had almost forgotten about her. He wondered briefly if Elijah knew of their encounter in the treasure room the previous night. Klaus had to admit that their conversation had affected him greatly. Her words elicited such a wide range of emotions from him, which had caused him to lash out so violently- a fact that he was not proud made him feel as if he had no control over himself or the things happening around him. She did not bend to his will, or respond to him with the fear he was always so good at provoking from others. He was unable to manipulate her, and for Klaus manipulation was practically second nature. He had made men with twice the will of Caroline mold to his liking. Yet, she seemed immune. If Klaus was not so angry about the fact, he might have found himself intrigued and excited.

He thought about what to do with her. He wanted Arthur moved out of the berth as soon as possible, to lower the other men's risk of exposure.

Elijah came up with a solution first. "Arthur can have my cabin until he is better," he proposed. "I will sleep in the berth until then, and Caroline can stay in Kol's room as she is."

Trevor looked to Klaus, and he nodded his approval. "I suppose that will do. Go on and have him moved now."

Trevor nodded and left to do so, leaving Elijah and Klaus.

"Is that everything then?"

"Yes, that's it." Elijah turned to leave as well, but stopped when Klaus spoke again.

"Where are you going?" He asked. Elijah and Klaus usually sat for a game of chess or cards after his morning report, hence Klaus's confusion as to why Elijah was leaving so soon.

"To check on Caroline," he responded. "I've not spoken to her since the night before yesterday."

Klaus resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "She's not a child, Elijah. I'm sure she can go a while longer without you hovering over her. Now why don't we finish our game of chess from yesterday," Klaus smiled, "I'm quite close to victory."

Elijah hesitated for a moment, before sighing and returning to sit across from Klaus, who did his best to ignore the agitation he felt over Elijah nearly turning his company down in favor of Caroline's.

For minutes, they sat in silence, watching the board and deliberating over what moves to make next, when Elijah spoke up. "What is it you want from her?" He asked, as Klaus used a bishop to overtake Elijah's rook.

"What do you mean?" Klaus was not thinking much about Elijah's question, instead trying to find a way to Elijah's king.

"What is it that you want from Caroline?"

Klaus sighed, was it not possible for him tobe allowed five minutes of peace without any thought or mention of Caroline? Her words from last night about his misery and need to spread it had looped continuously in his mind long after he stormed away, and even followed him into his dreams. And now it would appear he could not even sit for chess with his brother without her bringing dragged into the conversation.

"Perhaps I mean to use her for ransom," Klaus lied, keeping his eyes trained on the board, hoping Elijah would accept his statement and leave it be.

Only he did not. Elijah knew him too well to buy that as truth. "Nonsense, kidnapping for ransom is not your style, it never has been."

"Well maybe I'm branching out." He responded disinterestedly, hoping to get back to the game. "Now, you've got a queen that happens to be in the way of my-"

"Niklaus," Elijah warned, making it clear that he was not going to drop the subject until he got the answer to his question.

"Fine," Klaus leaned back in his chair, setting his eyes on Elijah. "Perhaps my purposes for her are of the more... _carnal_ nature," Klaus said with a wicked smirk, knowing how much his comment would unsettle Elijah.

But much to Klaus's disappointment, Elijah hardly reacted. "Ridiculous," he waved Klaus's words off. "If that was your intent you would have spent more time seducing her and less time threatening her."

Klaus's amused smile dropped. He was frustrated that Elijah was being so insistent about this.

"I mean to question her about her father and his business affairs." He said flatly. No longer in the mood for Elijah's company, he chose to now get straight to the point, so he could be left alone about it all. "I believe Bill Forbes is privy to several things I would like to know of. As his daughter, Caroline may have some knowledge of them."

"What business affairs?" Elijah leaned forward, pleased that Klaus was no longer dodging.

Klaus stood upfrom his seat and walked to his liquor cabinet. He poured himself a drink and took a long gulp before answering, "It's possible that Bill Forbes and our father may still be in correspondence."

"What are you saying?" Elijah questioned, standing slowly at the mention of their father.

Klaus took another drink from his cup and turned to face his brother, "I believe he may know where Mikael is."

Elijah had a quick mind and understood immediately.

"You intend to kill Mikael." He gasped.

"Ay," Klaus nodded. "If Bill Forbes is still in contact with our father, he may know how often Mikael is out at sea, and which courses his ship mightfollow. I would be able to find him before he can find me, kill him, and end this once and for all."

Elijah staggered back a few paces and sat down, needing a moment to process what he had just been told.

It was possible. After six years of running and hiding, there was finally a possibility that Klaus could have the upper hand against Mikael, kill him and put and end to their secretive, elusive way of life.

No more running.

Elijah cleared his throat and regained his composure. "And what then?" He questioned.

"What do you mean?" Klaus asked, refilling his now empty glass and pouring one for Elijah as well.

Elijah stood back up and walked towards Klaus as he spoke, "Once Mikael is dead, there will be no reason to run anymore. What do you mean for your life to be then? Surely no more of terrorizing the seas," Elijah laughed, but there was an edge to it- nervousness. He knew what he wanted Klaus to say, but he also knew, somewhere inside him, that it would never be.

"I've nearly built a monopoly on piracy, which will only grow once Mikael is gone," Klaus responded. "I see not why I would walk away from that."

"Niklaus," Elijah put his hand on his brother's shoulder, still smiling, "we became pirates because we were running from Mikael. Once he is gone, we will no longer need this. We can get back to our lives, our true lives. We could easily receive a pardon," he urges. "Surely the courts would be willing to negotiate one, with the right amount of money. And we come from a respected name. We can rejoin society, live like normal people."

Klaus looked at his brother standing before him, the hopeful smile plastered on his face, the expectant gleam in his eye, and he felt... _repulsed_. Who was this man in front of him? He wondered. So eager to return to a domestic, common life? Where was the pirate who slaughtered, plundered, and stole alongside him?

He then looked to the hand, resting on his shoulder, and peeled it off in disgust. "You would have me step away from the empire I've built?" He took a step closer to Elijah. "You would have me kneel before the courts and beg forgiveness as I hand over my fortune?" Another step. With each word, the gleam in Elijah's eyes fades. He knows quite well where this is going. "You would have me use _his_ name," Klaus shouts, "in order to negotiate a _normal_ life?!"

Elijah stares at his fuming brother, feeling each of his hopes and dreams shatter one by one and fall to the floor with a dull thud.

"This is my kingdom. I built it, I shaped it, and I will never leave it."

The final nail.

Klaus had resigned himself, this much Elijah could see. No matter what, he would never step away from this life.

Elijah sighed, his breath heavy with the weight of everything he had ever done for his brother, the dead weight of all dreams, the weight of the decision he was about to make.

"That is your choice, but I am afraid I cannot join you."

Klaus was taken back, "What did you say?"

"I cannot continue this," Elijah said, his voice broken with sorrow. "I cannot..."

"Don't be ridiculous, Elijah. Never once have you failed me. This is a passing feeling. I need you by my side. Stand with me, 'lijah," Klaus urged. "Be my brother."

"This is you life," Elijah said. "But what of my life?" He questioned. "I have done more than just been your brother. I have sacrificed everything for you, but no more. It ends today." The rejection written on Klaus's face caused Elijah to cringe inwardly, but he forced himself to continue on. "You are toxic, Niklaus. You infect everyone you touch. I will not allow you taint me anymore than you already have."

Klaus could not believe what he was hearing. Elijah was... _leaving_ him? After everything, he planned to just walk away?

In a moment, Klaus's hurt turned to rage, and he boiled as he felt any affection for his brother become shrouded with unrelenting anger. Never once had Elijah defied him, not until a certain woman appeared on his ship. She was a siren, and Elijah the fool caught in her hypnotic gaze.

"This is that woman, isn't it?" He accused bitterly. "Caroline. Filling your head with ridiculous notions. You know, I would expect this much from Trevor, who falls in love with every women he meets, but I thought better of you Elijah. Tell me, what did she promise you?"

"This has nothing to do with Caroline." Elijah took a large step back, putting space between them. "This is about me, Niklaus."

"What did she promise you?" Klaus thundered, not believing Elijah's claim that she had no part in this.

"Niklaus please,"

"Did she tell you she could convince her father to pardon you? Hm?" He snapped. "Well perhaps when I'm done with Mikael, I'll make Bill Forbes my next target."

"Niklaus, enough-"

"Better yet, why don't I go straight for the source- Caroline herself? I suppose I could simply kill her, but where would be the fun in that?"

"Stop this now!" Elijah insisted.

"No, you say I'm a toxin? That I infect everyone I touch? Well then I'll be sure to get my fingers all over your pretty little girl friend. On her face, in her hair, across her chest,_ between her legs_," he hissed. "I will leave the imprints of my hands all across her innocent little soul, and then we will see how well your precious Caroline fares against my deadly poison, _brother_." Klaus spat.

By now, both brothers had been pushed to the edge, and Elijah ran forward, fist raised to throw a punch, which Klaus easily dodged, throwing Elijah into the desk. Elijah fell to the floor and Klaus fought hard to restrain himself from beating his brother to a bloody pulp right there.

He took several deep and violent breaths, then turned and stormed to the door, saying to Elijah, "We'll be docking in New Providence in two days. You can take your leave there," before throwing the door open and slamming it shut behind him.

* * *

Caroline mindlessly tinkered with the pendant around her neck. It was around noon and most of the men were below deck, eating their midday meal. She had chosen to take her meal alone on the main deck. The crewmen were still being distant with her, due to Klaus's unspoken threats. Stefan also continued to keep his distance, even though he had revealed to her his past the previous night. After his revelation, Stefan admitted that the reason he had been avoiding Caroline since her arrival on the ship was due to the fact that she was a painful reminder of his past life. When Stefan looked on Caroline, he could not help but remember the person he had been before the accident that resulted in Giuseppe's death. Stefan claimed, quite aggressively, that he was now a different man than he had been when Caroline knew him in Mystic Falls. Despite her protests that he was the same person, he continued to insist that the man he was now was a harsher version of himself, one that did not feel as he once did. Being around Caroline, he claimed, caused memories and emotions to resurfacethat he wished to keep buried.

So while Stefan promised to continue to look out for her from afar, and keep an interest in her safety, he would not be engaging withher on a regular basis. Caroline did her best to respect his decision without feeling too hurt. She recognized, though, that she was not at fault, as she had done nothing wrong. She could not help that her mere presence stirred such things in Stefan. And she could not help that he was adamant in keeping these things from surfacing. So she accepted his choice with a quiet nod, a small reassuring smile, and light kiss on the cheek.

Nonetheless, Caroline was still lonely. Even when Klaus was not busying Elijah with irrelevant chores, it would so happen that having a position such as Elijah's was no easy task. As Quartermaster, it seemed he was in charge of nearly everything- settling disputes between the seamen (which flared quite often, and frequently turned violent), overseeing the duties of those in lesser positions to ensure that they were adequately fulfilling their responsibilities, and just management in general. Caroline wondered, with Elijah doing all of this, what exactly the purpose of the captain was. Did he truly do anything at all? Or just lounge around, listening to Elijah's daily reports, and provide an executive decision when need be?

Caroline finished her apple (they seemed to be in abundance of those, as well as potatoes) and threw the core into the water. It flew through the air and landed a distance away in the water with a simple splash and slight rippling effect.

"As much as I'm sure the fish will enjoy that, I think the chickens may have appreciated it more."

Caroline tensed at the voice behind her and did not turn around to face the speaker.

She heard him take a step closer to the ledge that she was sitting on, legs dangling over the side of the ship.

"May I sit with you?" He asked, partially shocking Caroline with his polite and innocent tone, which only led for her to be more suspicious of his intentions.

"I believe it is your ship, and I your pris- guest," she corrected herself, keeping in mind Klaus's word of warning from before, "so I suppose I am in no position to decline."

Klaus moved forward and hoisted himself up on the ledge, turning so that his legs hung over the water next to Caroline's.

For several minutes, they sat in silence, rocking lightly with the water. Caroline kept her gazed fixed on the horizon, as did Klaus, though he occasionally peeked at her out of the side of his eye. Finally she heard him take an audible breath and turn his head to look at her properly. He noticed that she sat clutching the necklace that she wore at all times, so tightly that her knuckles took on a whitish tint. He looked at the necklace with interested eyes, but could see little of it through her firm grip, only that it was blue and appeared to be stone.

"That's an interesting necklace." Klaus noted aloud.

Still, Caroline did not turn her gaze on him and his words only led her to clutch the stone tighter. When she did not respond, Klaus attempted to engage her further.

"Where did you get it?"

She looked down, likely debating internally on whether or not to answer him. When enough time had passed that Klaus thought it unlikely she would, Caroline finally spoke.

"It was a gift." She muttered.

Caroline's eyes glazed over as she got lost in the memory of her father giving it to her. Mere days, it had been. And yet, it felt like so much longer. Klaus noticed the nostalgic demeanor she took on, and turned his eyes back on the water, waiting in silence for her to come out of her reverie.

As she did, she cleared her throat and cast her eyes down. "Is there something you wanted?" She asked. "Because if you have come with the decision that you are tired of me after all, you have caught me in the most convenient position. One small push and you would be rid of me."

Klaus sighed, "I have no intentions of killing you."

"Then perhaps you've come to hurt me again. I can say, my wrists, neck, shoulders and back have been effectively marked. Would you like to go for my torso this time? Or perhaps my legs? They remain unharmed so far." On the surface, Caroline's voice was neutral- a stark contrast to the subject she spoke on. But lying underneath was a bitterness, and also tiredness that Klaus was all too aware of.

"Nor have I come to harm you," he attempted to reassure her.

She looked at him and smiled with such false sweetness, Klaus found it difficult to look at her and dared not let himself think of the dejectedness that lay thick behind the imitation contentment that turned her lips up into the lie that was her smile. "I'm afraid your words inspire little confidence. Just last night, did you not promise to keep your temper sober? And yet, I found myself in another dangerous corner, your temper having put me there."

Klaus bowed his head, feeling genuine shame, even if it were miniscule. _I promise I won't lose my temper this time_. Yes, he had said those words to Caroline in the treasure room the previous night, and despite his intention to have nothing more than a civil conversation with her, he had indeed allowed his temper to take over the situation.

"I admit that I have always been a man of my word, until last night. I do apologize. You have a boldness that I am unaccustomed to. When faced with an unfamiliar situation, I often... lash out." Klaus admitted.

The apology surprised Caroline a bit, but did not move her. She was only shocked because she would have believed him incapable of feeling apologetic.

Again, they found themselves in silence.

Knowing that the midday break would soon be over and the deck would become crowded with men again, Klaus spoke suddenly, "Stefan is the closest thing I have to a friend."

Caroline's face contorted into an expression of confusion, the sudden and out place comment catching her off guard.

Klaus seemed to notice and elaborated, "You asked me what I would know about friendship," he explained. "Stefan, I would consider a true friend."

"Hm," Caroline hummed, contemplating his statement as she looked over the water. Perhaps Stefan was right. Perhaps he had changed from the boy she once knew. She knew Stefan- Stefan the kind, noble, courteous friend she grew up along side. However, she also knew that _that_ Stefan would never have befriended a pirate, much less become one himself. Perhaps he was different after all.

"As for Elijah," Klaus continued, "I never forced him to come with me."

"Come with you?" Caroline inquired.

"The day I ran from my home," he clarified. "I meant to leave on my own, but my siblings each made the decision to come along on their own, despite my efforts to dissuade them from doing so."

"I see," Caroline murmured, mulling his words over in her head, "They must care about you very much, to have run from home with you."

Klaus scoffed, "I would hardly say they did it for me."

"What other reason would they have for abandoning their lives?"

"I already told you, Caroline," Klaus's voice was much harder now, "you know nothing of my family."

"Well I know what I see," she replied, "and I see that your brothers love y-"

"Finn came because he was betrothed to a woman he cared nothing for, and was in love with a whore," Klaus interrupted her angrily. "He wished to escape his obligations and saw my departure as an opportunity. He cares not for me, nor anyone else for that matter. Kol followed because he is a reckless child who enjoys causing trouble everywhere he goes. He too saw an opportunity for a life more suitable to his tastes and seized it. It is my firm belief that he would have ended up a rogue with or without me," he finished with a short laugh that was hollow of any humor. He looked for a moment as if he were about to speak again, but he stopped himself before he could say anymore.

Caroline had kept her observing eyes on Klaus as he spoke, noting the pain evident in his face, given away primarily by his clenched jaw, and the look in his blue-green . She remained silent, watching the battle on his face, as he fought to keep his expression neutral and uncaring. It was a fight she was all too familiar with, to push away your own emotions, for fear they were not valid.

"And Elijah?" She inquired quietly.

Klaus seemed to hesitate. "He had no desire to live alone with out father," he finally said.

But Caroline was not convinced. She supposed it was a legitimate reason, as she knew nothing of their father. But when Klaus spoke of Elijah's reasons, he lacked the conviction that had been quite evident before. Speaking of Finn and Kol, there was such a sureness, such a finality, in Klaus's voice, that she did not doubt what he said was true- that they had personal motives that pushed them to follow him.

However, when he stated Elijah wanted to escape living alone with their father, it sounded more to Caroline like an excuse rather than the true reason.

She nodded her head and looked back to the sea, "Pardon me, but I think you are wrong. I know nothing of your father, or why Elijah may be so eager to leave him, but I still stand firm in my previous statements. Elijah is only here for you."

"It was his own choice to come."

"You misunderstand what I'm saying," Caroline said. "Your brother wants better than," Caroline gestured towards the ship and the sea with her eyes, "_this_ for you, but knows not how to give it to you. Elijah loves you, but despises the way you live, and feels caught, not wanting to leave you, but not wanting to commit to your life."

"It sounds to me as if you speak from experience," Klaus snapped, once again angered by her unexpected wit.

"Perhaps," she said, so quietly he might have imagined it.

Right then, the ship rocked more heavily than usual, causing Caroline to nearly slip from the ledge she sat on. Without thinking Klaus reacted and quickly reached out to grab her waist, pulling her back beside him.

Caroline flinched at his touch and immediately stilled. Her first instinct was to push him off, until she realized that he had in fact stopped her from tumbling down into the water. Moreover, his touch was neither violent nor threatening, as it had been all the previous times he touched her. Now, his hands gripped either side of her waist with a firm, yet gentle hold.

Sensing her sudden tense posture at the contact, Klaus reluctantly pried his finger from Caroline's midsection, and she quietly scooted away from him, restoring the distance between them.

After another stretch of silence, Caroline's small voice came through.

"What do you want from me?" She asked.

At her question, Klaus turned his head to look at her, and what he saw struck him with an intensity he could not have expected. Caroline sat there, hands in her lap and head bowed, eyes glued down. Her shoulders were hunched, and all Klaus could think was how uncharacteristic this was of every other time he had seen her. There, in her hunched and bowed state, she looked so incredibly small, and so terribly afraid. Her usually strong voice quivered and barely resounded enough to make it to his ears.

Was this truly the same woman who had stood squarely in front him, matching his height as best she could? Could this actually be the person who slammed her hand down in defiance and demanded to be released? Whose words were always spoken with such confidence each time she dared speak against him? She who refused to show fear?

Had he done this? Klaus wondered. Was he responsible for this- this cowering, shadow of the headstrong woman who had been nothing but a nuisance to him since her arrival?

And if this was his doing- this unraveling of that unlikely opponent- why did he not feel pride? Should he not be pleased with himself, for finally breaking her? Yes, he knew he should. So why, instead, did he feel only shame and guilt?

Why did he find himself longing to see her straighten up, look him right in the eye, and tell him he was dead inside?

"What do you want from me?" She repeated quietly.

Klaus sighed. He did not want to talk about Mikael and Bill and politics and pirates, but he didn't know what else to say to her. So he told her the story of Mikael, the nameless man who joined the British Navy at 16 years old. Who, against the odds, rose in rank from a lowly seaman, due to his calculated, focused, and clever talent for war. He told her about the day Bill and Mikael had met, when Bill had come into England, having captured the infamous pirate John Coxon. Klaus told her the story of how the two men had become acquainted, and how they had built Mystic Falls into the successful, tobacco producing town it was now. She listened quietly as he explained that even though Mikael had moved back to England long ago, he believed the two may still be in correspondence.

When he finished and she told him that she was ignorant of all her father's business affairs, he believed her.

Even if Caroline did know anything, she was too worn down to muster up the effort to lie.

"I know you are likely upset that I can't tell you what you want, but I can tell you something that may make you happy." She said.

"What's that?" Klaus questioned, interested.

"You did it," she said. "_Broke_ me. I can honestly say that I am miserable. Lonely, hopeless, and miserable. Congratulations. Though I suppose I am no longer any use to you. I suppose you plan to kill me now."

Klaus felt as if he had just been slapped. "I told you I wasn't going to kill you." He said.

"And I told you that your words inspire little confidence," she responded.

With that, Caroline turned away from the water, brought her legs back across the ledge, hopped down from her seat, and began to walk away.

"Caroline," Klaus called.

She stopped and turned to him, but Klaus did not know what to say.

Just then, the crew began to come back out on deck, their break over, singing and making a raucous, breaking the quiet spell Klaus and Caroline had been under.

Caroline began to walk away, and when Klaus said her name, she pretended not to hear over the noise of the men. He wanted to follow her, tell her that he did not want her misery, that he would take anything- her anger, her hatred, her indifference- over the sadness she now exuded.

But Klaus had never felt anything like that before, and he would not have known how to say these things. So he turned back to the water and let her go.

* * *

_Well you only need the light when it's burning low  
Only miss the sun when it starts to snow  
Only know you love her when you let her go  
_ _And you let her go  
_ _(Passenger)_

* * *

**A/N: You guys don't know this, but every time I get a new review/follow/favorite, I throw you a wink and a blow kiss. ;)**

**I originally had WAY more back story on Mikael and Bill, but ended up cutting it out because it just didn't fit. I have this nasty habit of creating a very elaborate back story for even the most minor of characters. Seriously. I have an entire life story for Arthur, Trevor, Jeremy, Mikael, Eliza, Esther, Bill and just about everyone else.**

**find me on tumblr at curtlemons**


	7. The Derelict

**A/N: In case anyone was wondering, Jeremy (who is not Jeremy Gilbert) ****_does_**** have a last name. It's Philip. Jeremy Philip. And remember how I told you I have a habit of creating complete back stories when they're not even necessary? Well, I wrote a sort-of-analysis for Jeremy Philip's character, because he's kind of my favorite in this story (aside from Klaus and Caroline, obviously). You don't have to read it, though I went ahead and put it at the bottom if anyone's interested.**

**Oh, yeah, I guess I should tell you what took me so long. ****_Well_****, it all started when I went to New Orleans. So that was for a few days. And then when I came back, I realized that my beloved sister ****_lost _****my notebook on the train from NOLA to Memphis. The notebook didn't actually have any of this story in it, but it had lots of stuff from two other stories. So I spent about a week super bummed and discouraged from writing ****_anything_**** due to all that lost information. I was so upset, I ended up dropping one of the stories completely. But as for the other one, I had to recreate everything that was in that notebook, and in the process of that I started writing a prologue, and then a chapter, and then I got really into that story. (It's called The Misfit Diaries and the prologue is posted if anyone wants to go check it out). And to be perfectly honest, I kind of forgot about this one (just a little!) until someone messaged me on tumblr about an update. (See what kind of power you guys have?! One person messages me and I get completely back on track with this story the minute they do! Imagine if you ****_all_**** left me reviews/messages *wink wink *)**

**Again, HUGE thanks to my beta minty4794. I feel like this story is a wild untamed jungle, and she treks through with a machete, hacking down obstructive plants, making a clear path for you readers so you don't have to worry about getting lost in the mess that is my writing. So you should consider thanking her, or else you'd all have to don safari gear just to get through my chapters.**  
**Oh, and BTW this story finally has a cover. So that's on my tumblr page (curtlemons) if you want to check it out.**

* * *

**VII:The Derelict:VII**

_"Fifteen men on a dead man's chest,  
Yo ho ho and a bottle of rum.  
Drink and the Devil had done for the rest,  
Yo ho ho and a bottle of rum._

_With a yo-heave-ho and a fare-you-well,  
And a sudden plunge in the sudden swell,  
Ten fathom's deep on the road to hell,  
Yo ho ho and a bottle of rum."_

_(TheDerelict-YoungAllison)_

A soft knock sounded on the door, and Caroline opened it to find Jeremy on the other side. He was smiling, and his teeth shined out against his dark complexion.

"Good morning," he said in his unique accent that Caroline had yet to identify.

"I suppose that is a matter of opinion," she responded flatly.

Jeremy chuckled at her response, but Caroline did not even crack a smile. She was still groggy, as shehad only just wokenup when she had heard Jeremy knocking.

"Don't fret. We will be in New Providence in two days and you will be able to take a break from the water."

_A break_, Caroline repeated his words in her mind. Not freedom, just a break from the water.

"It is not the water I wish a break from," she said through clenched teeth, "but rather this pointless imprisonment."

"Don't let the captain hear you say that." Jeremy warned.

Caroline just shook her head in aggravation. Wasn't there anyone on this ship who did not bend to their captain's will? _I suppose not_, she thought to herself, _I suppose that is why he is captain. _"How long will we be in New Providence?" She asked.

"However long the captain wishes to stay."

Caroline nodded.

"I brought you some breakfast," he said and held up a bowl, which contained grits and two boiled eggs. She noticed that in his other hand was another bowl.

"Why did you bring two?"

"I was hoping you might let me join you."

Caroline narrowed her eyes in suspicion. While the crew had been respectful to her, they had also been distant ever since Trevor was punished for being friendly to her. Why now would Jeremy care to engage with her, when he knew Klaus would not want him to? Unless-

"Did your _captain_ ask you to keep an eye on me?" She asks bitterly, practically spitting the word captain.

"Does it matter?" He shrugged.

Caroline debated internally on whether to accept his invitation to breakfast. On one hand, he was most likely sent here by Klaus. Caroline did not know why he would do that, nor did she particularly care. Her first reaction was to defy anything and everything Klaus said or did.

But on the other hand, Caroline was incredibly lonely, and painfully bored, and Jeremy had only ever been kind to her. Making her decision, she opened the door wider, allowing him access inside.

* * *

As they ate their breakfast, they made light conversation, mostly Jeremy praising Caroline for not having gotten sea sick despite this being her first time on water. When they finished their meal, Jeremy pulled out a deck of cards and taught Caroline one of the games the crew often played to pass the down time.

"Why are you being so nice to me?" Caroline asked as he reshuffled the deck.

"Do I have any reason not to be?"

"I suppose not," she muttered, observing the way he made a point not to look at her when she asked. "But why are you here? Everyone has made a point to avoid me. You would not have come unless Klaus told you to."

"This is true," he responded noncommittally, still shuffling the cards.

"Why?"

"You ask many questions."

"Because otherwise nobody would give me any answers."

Jeremy smiled, "You are a very interesting woman."

Caroline's primary reaction was to apologize. So often throughout her life she was scolding for not complying with the normal, complacent role of a woman. How often she was frowned upon for the tongue she could not seem to control; for the remarks that came tumbling from her mouth seemingly before she could even think them. But that was when she lived on land, wore a gown daily, and had to obey proper mannerisms and etiquette.

But she was no longer on land. She was on a ship, surrounded by men who cared nothing for mannerisms and etiquette. But then again, some habits are more difficult to rid oneself of than others. So she did not apologize, but she did bow her head slightly and stop talking.

Jeremy stopped shuffling and set down the deck, "Would you like to play again?"

"If I win, will you tell me why you are here?"

Jeremy scratched his chin in contemplation and then agreed. "If you win," he said.

Caroline nodded once in satisfaction and they played another game of speed. When Caroline slapped down her last card and looked to see Jeremy still holding three of his, a triumphant grin appeared on her face.

"You are a quick learner," he said, impressed with Caroline's feat.

"Thank you. Now, I believe you owe me something."

"I am afraid it's nothing exciting. I was simply asked to keep an eye on you." Jeremy gathered up the cards as he spoke.

"By whom?" Caroline inquired.

"The captain."

"Why?"

"I do not think he would like me repeating his words."

"I do not think he would like me repeating his words," Caroline mocks with a poor imitation of Jeremy's accent. "God forbid any of you defy your master," she scoffed, crossing her arms.

"I have only one master." Jeremy spoke with an edge in his voice that Caroline was not accustomed to hearing from him. "I have only one master," he repeated, more gently than before, "and that is God. Can I tell you a story, Caroline?"

"Of course," she said, curious as to that Jeremy might say. She had overheard many interesting stories from the seamen.

"As I said, God is my only master. The only one I serve. You see, I once prayed to him for liberation. Once every day I prayed for liberation."

"Liberation?" Caroline's voice is weak, as she realizes what Jeremy's words mean. If he prayed for liberation, that would mean he was once a slave.

"Yes, I prayed to God for liberation every morning and every night. Until one day, when my holder's ship was attacked by pirates. I watched my holder and men like him fall dead at the blades of rogues. I thought surely my fate would be the same. I sent God thanks that day."

"Thanks?" Caroline did not understand. Why would Jeremy give thanks moments before his death? Why not pray for mercy or deliverance?

"If death was my liberation," Jeremy explained, "I would welcome it. I could move on and join the spirits. He had heard my cries for freedom, and when I was faced with death, I did not curse him, but instead thanked him. God is gracious; He rewarded my faith with life. I was not slaughtered, but rather given the option to come aboard this ship and join the crew. As I kneeled there on the deck, awaiting a sword to be thrust through my heart, Klaus stepped in front of me, asked me if I would like to be free, and then brought me aboard this ship as an equal member of this crew."

"But Klaus is not a good person," Caroline tried to reason, "He's no better than any slaveholder."

"Look at my back, Caroline." Jeremy said.

"What?"

"Lift my shirt up, and look at my back. What do you see?"

Caroline warily rose from her seat and moved around to behind Jeremy's chair. He leaned forward slightly, giving her room to lift his shirt and examine his back. As she saw what he meant to show her, she could not suppress the gasp that escaped her at the sight. There she saw an assortment of lines littered across the dark brown complexion of Jeremy's back.

"Scars..." she nearly whispered, taking in the sight of the many tracks across his skin.

"Yes," Jeremy said, "scars. Not wounds. Where my holders rewarded by obedience with punishment, Klaus gave me food and asked for loyalty. Now tell me again that he is no better than they are."

Caroline found herself at a loss for words, "I- I don't..." she stuttered.

Jeremy took the pressure of forming suitable words from her when he spoke instead. "The captain does wicked things. He slaughters men without apology, but these are the same men who would steal a child from his home, take him across the sea, and treat him as an animal to be tamed. Is he really any more wicked than they? But Klaus is more than what he does; he has goodness in him, stirring beneath the surface. It is there."

"How can you know that?" Caroline asked, doubting Jeremy's claim that there was any remnant of a redeemable quality in Klaus.

"I have faith that God would not call me to follow a man of pure evil. God sent Klaus to me," he said, "just as God brought you to Klaus."

As his words registered, Caroline found herself taken aback. "Excuse me?"

"All men have love in them, Caroline. Just as all men have evil in them. Some more than others. For those who lack large supplies of love, they must reserve what they have only for those who are worthy. God has chosen you, Caroline. You are worthy to him. You are so different from Klaus. What he lacks in light, you have an abundance. What you lack in darkness, he carries quite enough for the both of you."

"And why would I want his darkness?"

"We are not angels, Caroline. Nor are we demons. We are humans, created in God's image, and tainted with Satan's poison. We are an amalgamation of heaven and hell. We harbor within us a spectrum of both good and evil. You and Klaus are on opposite ends. Together, you balance each other out. Humans are meant to be neither pure nor wicked. There must be a balance."

Again, Caroline found herself at a loss for words. While she did not fully understand, nor agree with, Jeremy's beliefs, she did not know how to dispel them without insulting him. So she simply opted for a dry, "I suppose that is a matter of opinion."

The corners of Jeremy's mouth turned up slightly at the recycled phrase from when he first said good morning to her, as he gathered up his cards and rose from his seat, heading for the door. "I suppose. However, I can say for a fact that Klaus did not just ask me to keep an eye on you. He asked me to keep you company. To keep you from being sad."

* * *

The next two days were relatively normal. The crew returned to their friendly engagement with Caroline, and Klaus kept an eye on her from a distance, but had not spoken to her since the day she admitted her misery. Elijah carried on with his day-to-day duties, and did not regard Klaus with bitterness. Through any other's eyes, it would appear as if nothing was amiss between the brothers. Kol, however, was more perceptive to the change in their dynamic.

"Alright," he said as he walked into Klaus's cabin, "enough of this." He set a bottle of rum on the desk along with two glasses. "What is going on with you and Elijah. I'm not blind, I can see well enough that you two are at odds."

Klaus regarded his little brother as he poured the two glasses. "He means to leave us," he stated flatly.

Kol's glass stopped right before his lips, until he simply shrugged, said, "Just words," and took a sip of his drink.

"Well I found his words rather convincing." Klaus said.

"Elijah will never leave your side. He may think he will, but when the time comes, he will not find himself able to walk away."

Klaus narrowed his eyes and swirled the drink around in its glass. "What makes you so sure?"

Again, Kol simply shrugged. "It's Elijah, always doing the moral thing and what not. He's a predictable fellow. Rather like Finn, who is always doing the dullest thing possible."

Feeling reassured by Kol's confidence, Klaus smiled and finally took a sip, "Ay, they are rather predictable, are they not?"

"Is that it then?" Kol asked, standing up. "I thought whatever was between you two might be a bit more exciting."

Klaus rolled his eyes. If Elijah could always be expected to follow his conscious, and Finn could always be expected to be dull, then Kol could always be expected to seek out drama.

"I thought perhaps the little beauty might be at the center of your spat. I thought that maybe both of you had your eyes on her." Kol shuffled around the room and tinkered with Klaus's things as he spoke.

"This has nothing to do with Caroline."

"So neither of you have your eye on her?"

"Pardon?"

"Well as long as she's up for the taking, I think I might consider giving it another shot. Granted, she did slap me, but I do so love a challenge."

"You will steer clear of Caroline," Klaus said, leaving no room for discussion in his tone. The thought of Kol troubling Caroline with his humorous charm unsettled him, though he felt Caroline was too smart to fall for any of Kol's usual tricks. Something told him that a pretty smile was not enough to fool a woman like Caroline.

"Oh, so you _do_ have your eye on her?" Kol said with a teasing smile. "Fret not, brother. I don't mind sharing."

"I said leave her alone," Klaus practically growled.

"Oh, come on, it'll be fun! We can alternate! I have her whenever I want, and you can have whenever I don't. Though I wouldn't expect that to be too often. She strikes me as a woman with stamina. I bet she could go for days-"

"If you so much as lay a finger on Caroline," Klaus nearly shouted, and then brought his voice down to a menacingly conversational tone, "or make her uncomfortable in any way, I'll rip out your liver and feed it to the crew."

Kol's lip twitched slightly, and Klaus smiled, knowing the threat achieved the desired affect. "Fine," Kol huffed. "Looks who's gotten all possessive recently. I surely hope she's worth it."

"Well, to be perfectly fair, your liver really isn't worth that much at all. Have you seen how much rum you drink?"

"We're pirates, Nik," Kol smiled as he walked to the door, "rum is practically our life source."

* * *

Elijah stood before Caroline, holding a gown. For a moment, she wondered where he got it from, until she remembered seeing an assortment of clothing on what she came to regard as the 'treasure deck.'

"What's this?" She asked.

"We will be docking soon. I thought you might be more comfortable in public wearing actual women's clothing."

"Oh." Caroline had nearly forgotten that for the entirety of her stay on the ship, she had been wearing men's clothing. She inspected the dress and noted the way it tied up in the back. "I'll have no one to lace it for me."

Elijah turned the dress over to the back and saw what Caroline meant. "Oh. Well I'm sure I can find one made differently. We have quite an assortment."

"No," Caroline shook her head. "No, it's fine. I won't be needing a gown."

Elijah seemed surprised. "You wish to go out without one?"

Caroline shrugged and looked down to the breeches and white linen shirt she donned, "I've grown quite accustomed to these clothes. I see no reason to change out of them."

"Very well then," Elijah nodded. "I'll see if I can find you a jacket."

* * *

As they walked through the streets, Caroline had trouble truly seeing the city as Elijah walked directly in front of her, and Trevor and Jeremy pressed close to her on both her sides. She did not understand why they stood so close and were adamant in seemingly blocking her from view until Trevor fell behind to converse with someone and Caroline's left side became exposed. She noticed Jeremy become preoccupied with someone to his right, so she snuck her way out of their smothering envelopment to better see the city on her own.

New Providence was unlike any place Caroline had ever seen. Granted, Mystic Falls was the only place she had ever been, but she still never imagined a place like New Providence. She suspected there might be a cleaner part to the city, but Elijah informed her that where they docked was a gathering place for many pirates, and therefore not very well kept. The streets were littered with empty bottles and passed out men. There were women dressed in ways Caroline had never seen before, and they behaved in a flamboyantly flirtatious manner she had never before witnessed. Caroline suspected they were the "ladies of the night" that she had overheard whispers of several times in her life.

"Caroline!"

Caroline turned around to see Trevor. Looking around, she realized how far she had wandered from the group, which was a fair distance down the street now, turning into what looked to be a tavern.

"You shouldn't wander off," he scolded, taking her hand and leading her in the direction of the pub.

"I have walked down streets on my own before, Trevor. I am not a child."

"Perhaps not," he smiled, "but you still should not wander off."

Caroline sensed a degree of condescension in Trevor's smile, however, before she could retort with a comment proving her ability to take care of herself, they entered the tavern and her ears became flooded with the sound of music, conversation, and laughter. She took in the scene with wide eyes; it was so unlike anything Caroline had ever experienced. Where celebrations and gatherings in Mystic Falls were always orderly and proper, everything here was so..._free_. Men and women walked about, spilling drinks, laughing animatedly, and dancing.

"Caroline," Elijah said walking towards her and Trevor with a concerned expression, "you should not wander off."

Caroline rolled her eyes and brushed past him, "I am not a child," she repeated as she took a seat at a table where Jeremy sat with some of the crewmembers.

"Caroline," Jeremy started to say.

"If you tell me that I should not wander off," she interrupted, her agitation growing, "you may find yourself without a tongue."

Caroline felt herself calm down as Jeremy's eyes widened and she even chuckled at the sight of his slightly frightened expression.

"Perhaps you could use a drink," he suggested, pushing a mug in front of her.

Caroline looked into the mug to see it was filled with a dark brown liquid.

"I would not recommend you drink that," Elijah said as he sat besides her, taking the drink from her grasp.

"Why not?" She asked, wondering what the drink was.

"I do not think you would be able to stomach it."

Caroline narrowed her eyes at him, "Can you stomach it?"

"Yes."

"Then I see no reason why I cannot stomach it as well."

"Caroline-" Elijah began to warn.

"Oh, come on Elijah," Stefan said as he staggered towards them, "give her a little breathing room, why don't you?"

Elijah turned his head towards Stefan, the annoyance written quite clearly on his face. "Mr. Salvatore," he nodded curtly. "I can see you have already had your fill."

"And you clearly haven't," Stefan retorted, taking another gulp of his drink, "someone's got to drink your share, am I right? Now, Caroline," Stefan turned his gaze on her, "would you like to dance?"

* * *

Caroline did not end up dancing with Stefan. As they walked away from the table, Stefan ended up tripping on his own feet and hitting his head quite hard against a table, knocking himself half unconscious.

"Not even here half an hour and already I'm stuck dragging his dead weight around," Trevor complained as he supported Stefan's weight, half-dragging him to a seat in the corner of the tavern where he sat him down. "He's got a bit of a drinking problem, you see."

"Will he be okay?" Caroline asked, eyeing the growing bump on the side of Stefan's forehead.

"Eh," Trevor shrugged, "he's seen worse."

As Caroline sat there with Stefan Trevor, Elijah, and Jeremy, she became tired of sitting still and itched to get up and explore. Looking around the tavern, she noticed a back room that seemed to be empty, based off what she could see through the door that was halfway open. Wondering what the room was for, she excused herself and stood from the table.

"Would you like me to accompany you?" Elijah asked, standing as well.

"No," Caroline responded quickly. She was eager to explore; she was not eager to do so with a babysitter.

Elijah appeared a bit shocked by her quick response, and caught as to what he should do. While he wanted to keep a protective eye on Caroline, he did not want to come off as intrusive. Taking advantage of his internal debate, Caroline scampered off before he could say anything else and slipped into the backroom.

As she stepped inside, the noise from the main room seemed to fade. She could hardly hear the voices that previously made the crowded tavern near deafening. The music, which had switched to a softer, more solemn tune, was muffled, but still audible.

As Caroline suspected, there was no one else in the room. It mostly contained an assortment of crates and barrels lined against the wall. There were a few chairs scattered across the space and a desk on the back wall. Just as Caroline was about to turn and leave, finding nothing of excitement in the room, she noticed a piano in the far corner. She walked over to it and brushed her fingers across the dust-covered keys, sat down on the bench and tapped down a quiet triplet.

"Do you play?"

The air seemed to shift as a voice sounded behind her; a voice that she knew immediately belonged to Klaus. He was not using his menacing voice, she noticed. It was softer, almost kind. Similar to the way he spoke to her some days ago, when they sat on the side of the ship together.

"No," Caroline shook her head, without turning to see him, "but my mother did." She played out a simple run, one of the few things she knew.

"She never taught you?"

Caroline heard him step forward. From the sound of it, she guessed he was standing just a few steps inside the door.

"I never expressed much interest," Caroline shrugged lightly, "so she let me spend my lesson times on the dock with Stefan."

Klaus walked towards Caroline as he spoke, "Why have lessons if she wasn't teaching you?"

Caroline did not answer, only continued brushing her fingers across the piano. As she wiped dust from the keyboard, she silently sorted through the memories that Klaus's question had triggered.

"_Matka," a seven-year-old Caroline whined, "I'm tired." Her little legs dangled from the piano bench, swinging back and forth._

"_No," the woman smiled, "you just don't want to be here." Caroline huffed and crossed her arms. "What are you thinking about, mój koliber?" _

_Caroline relaxed at her mother's soft tone and term of endearment, "Stefan said that Giuseppe would-"_

"_Mr. Salvatore," her mother corrected._

"_Stefan said that _Mr. Salvatore _will be taking him out on the water today. So he can learn about how the sails work in motion."_

_Eliza smiled down at her sadly, understanding what Caroline wanted. "You know you cannot go with them. You're father has made it very clear that you are to stay out of the sea." Caroline pouted. Her father always warned her of the dangers of the ocean, told her horror stories of his days as a pirate hunter. He was adamant that Caroline would never be on a ship. "But," her mother continued, "You can go say goodbye to Stefan. Since he likely won't be back for a few days." She folded the music book shut and stood up from the piano bench, "Hurry on now, Caroline. It's early and I'm sure they will be leaving soon."_

"_But what about my lesson?"_

"_You have no interest in this, Caroline. Just be sure to take a different way than the road where Mr. Gilbert works. That's where your father is now, we wouldn't want him seeing you out during your lesson time, would we?" Eliza grinned, taking Caroline's hand and leading her out of the room. "Abby?" Eliza called. Abby Bennett stepped out of the library with a feather duster, and Eliza gently took the cleaning utensil from her, "Will you please escort Caroline to the docks so she can see the Salvatore's off?"_

"_Of course," Abby smiled, taking Caroline's hand._

"_And I want you to take her to the docks during all her lesson times from now on, yes?"_

_Caroline's eyes widened, "You won't make me play piano?"_

"_Oh Caroline," Eliza kneeled in front of her daughter and tucked a strand of hair behind the little girl's ear, "I wouldn't dream of making you do something you didn't want to."_

"_But what about Daddy?" Caroline asked._

"_What he doesn't know won't hurt him," Eliza pecked Caroline on the cheek, "this can be our little secret."_

Caroline smiled fondly at the memory.

"Mój koliber?" Klaus asked, not understanding the meaning of the words.

Finally, Caroline looked up at him, confused as to how he knew that phrase; until it dawned on her that she must have said it aloud without realizing. Again, she said nothing, just looked back to the keys.

"May I sit?" Klaus asked, gesturing to the piano bench.

Caroline nodded and scooted over to make room for him. The bench was long enough for both of them to sit on and still have space between them.

"I never played much either," he said, placing one hand on the keyboard, "Finn was the more musical brother. He could spend hours at the piano."

Caroline nodded and watched Klaus's fingers as they skimmed across the keys, never pressing any of them down hard enough to draw sound, until he stopped skimming, set his hand in a very set position, and pressed down gently on four keys simultaneously, drawing a warm chord out of the piano. He held the chord until the sound began to dissolve, and then his fingers slowly began to move along the keys, pressing down on a variation of notes, stringing them together into a melody. As the piece played out, it seemed to be drawn from a harmonious foundation, yet the more carefully Caroline listened, the more she became aware of the more dissonant notes that rang quietly beneath the harmonic surface. Not long after it began, Klaus's song seemed to come to a close, ending on the same chord that it began on.

When Klaus finished, he closed his eyes for a brief moment. He had not meant to play that song for her; it was only one he knew, and had been taught to him by his mother, Esther. Even when she was alive, he had not enjoyed piano much, always preferring his sketchbooks. But on occassion, he would sit at the piano bench and play a tune when she requested it. However, he had not touched a keyboard since her death, nor had he ever planned to again.

Until he saw Caroline sitting there brushing her fingers across the piano and he felt the urge to do the same, thinking that perhaps, if did as Caroline did, he would be able to feel what she was feeling. It was curious, he realized; Klaus had never before felt the desire to understand someone. Empathy was for those who wished to connect with others, something Klaus had no interest in. Yet, here and now, he wanted nothing more than to know Caroline. For all he had seen of her, he knew nothing of her. He did not understand her, as she was unlike anyone he had met before. Previously, the fact that he could not read her had only frustrated him. Yet at some point without his realizing it, that anger had dissapated and was now turning into an intrigue that was becoming increasingly difficult to for him ignore.

Thus was the reason he had followed her to the back room, the reason he had asked to sit with her, and the reason he had brushed his fingers acorss the keys the way she did. And once his fingers were there, they seemed to move of their own volition, reacquianting him with the tune he had not played in so long.

The unusual melody left Caroline slightly perplexed. While it had initially seemed beautiful, once she became aware of the dissonant undertones, she felt the piece carried a weight underneath the surface. It was still beautiful, only darker. The tune reminded Caroline of herself- lovely and delicate, yet laced with melancholy and secrets.

"I thought you said you don't play," Caroline said.

"Well," Klaus smiled and shrugged, "I suppose I know a _few_ things."

For a moment Caroline only regarded him with a disbelieving expression, until a smile began to appear on her face, and before she knew it she was laughing.

Oh, how good it felt, Caroline thought. Genuine laughter. It felt as if it had been much too long since she had a good and proper laugh.

As it dawned on Caroline that this man was the reason for that, her laughter began to die out. Suddenly, she felt bombarded with an onslaught of conflicting thoughts and hurriedly excused herself, getting up from the piano bench and walking quickly out of the room and back to her table with Stefan and the others.

As she sat there, oblivious to any conversations that were being held around her, Caroline tried to make sense of her opposing emotions. Klaus was the reason she had been so miserable recently. And yet, here he was, the one who making her laugh. Not Elijah, who was presently only irritating her with his ever-watchful eye. Not Stefan, who only ignored her, except when he was drunk, apparently. Not Jeremy or Trevor, both of whom she enjoyed, but even in their company she could not seem to forget her dreadful situation.

No, it was Klaus.

The cause of her misery.

And yet the cause of her laughter.

* * *

Caroline was pulled from her thoughts of Klaus when Kol approached the table, two women hanging on him, his arms around their waists.

"Trevor, mate, look at the lovely ladies I've procured for the evening. I'm headed back to the inn, if you'd like to join me." He said with a gleeful smile, and briskly turned away and left the tavern.

Trevor downed the rest of his drink and practically lept from the table to follow Kol and the two women out of the tavern. Caroline realized that at some point Jeremy had left as well, as was nowhere to be seen. Therefore, Caroline was left sitting with a half-conscious Stefan, who was currently muttering repeatedly, "Yo ho ho and a bottle of rum." As she surveyed the crowd around her, she noticed the careful eye Elijah was keeping on her. Rather than making her feel safe, she only felt angry that he insisted on treating her as if she was incapable of being left alone for even a moment.

The tavern began to quiet down as people gathered around the makeshift stage where the musicians had been playing. Curious, but not wanting to leave Stefan alone in his present state, Caroline stood and craned her neck to see what everyone was so interested in, and saw a man in the center of the crowd sitting on a stool with a stringed instrument on his lap.

"Shut ye fat mouths and I'll tell ya' a story!" He bellowed with a broad grin. There was a chorus of laughter, cheers and _Ay_'s from the crowd. The man loudly cleared his throat and strummed a melodic chord on his instrument. "Fifteen men on a dead man's chest," he said dramatically, and strummed another chord. "Drink and the devil had done for the rest." _Strum_. "The mate was fixed by the bosun's pike. The bosun brained with a marlinspike."

Caroline stopped listening, not fully understanding the majority of what the speaker was saying. Looking around the tavern, she saw that Elijah was no longer watching her with a hawk's eye, and saw an opportunity to escape his watchful gaze. She looked over to Stefan, who appeared to have drool dribbling from his mouth, and whispered, "Sorry Stef," and stealthily eased her way around the tavern to the front door, ducked out, and briskly walked down the street until she was a good distance from the pub.

But in Caroline's desperation to get away from one set of watchful eyes, she did not notice another. And in her eagerness to see the strange, new city, she did not realize that she was being followed.

Caroline may have escaped Elijah's gaze, but now was only under the watch of two others.

* * *

As Caroline walked down the cobble stone street alone, she was amazed by how different New Providence was from Mystic Falls. There were many people on the streets, the majority of whom appeared to be intoxicated. Every building that Caroline passed seemed to have some music pouring from it, the sound of merry singing accompanying the rhythmic tunes that were so different from the kind of music Caroline was accustomed to. So absorbed with the sights and sounds, she hardly noticed that the sun had set completely since they arrived. The city was now in the darkness of night, the main streets lit only by the light filtering through out of the establishments lined along the streets.

And it was for that darkness that Caroline did not take notice of a man standing in the shadow of an unlit area, until there was a hand around her mouth and an arm around her waist, dragging out of the light of the street and into the darkness of the alley.

* * *

_My sister told me a soul mate is not the person  
who makes you feel the happiest, but the one who  
makes you feel the most, who conducts your heart_

_to bang the loudest, who can drag you giggling  
with forgiveness from the cellar they locked you in.  
It has always been you._

_(SierraDemulder)_

* * *

**A/N: As promised, there is a sort-of-analysis of Jeremy Philip at the bottom of this note that you are by ****_no_**** means obligated to read. As always, thank you all followers, favoriters, and reviewers! And thank you for not giving up after this long wait. I don't intend to ever take this long again, but sometimes life just gets in the way. Eh, what can you do? Feel free to let me know what you think. I really take you guys' opinions into account when I'm writing, so if you want more/less of something let me know and I will do my best to satisfy your requests within the bounds of the layout I already have set for this story!**

**find me on tumblr at curtlemons**

**Oh, hi, hello to anyone still reading. Everything from here on down is totally optional reading. Still want to read it anyway? Fantastic! Embark with me on an analysis of the character Jeremy Philip:**

**So, about Jeremy. As you may or may not have noticed, there are some pretty loose parallels between Arms and Enemies and TVD. First, my Pirates are basically the equivalent of tvd's Vampires. Later in the story you will see my equivalent of the Witches. Jeremy, however, is kind of a representation of the Hybrids. Similar to their "Klaus saved me and now I owe him" mentality, Jeremy believes God sent Klaus to save him, and so he will follow Klaus regardless of what Klaus does. It's a very problematic and kind of twisted way of thinking, but it is what it is. Caroline definitely sees that Jeremy's logic is not totally sound, but regardless of that, his story opens her eyes to realize that, yes, Klaus is malicious, but no, that's not ****_all_**** Klaus is. Now, Jeremy's perspective on Klaus is heavily influenced by Jeremy's spiritual beliefs, and as you can see, those beliefs don't exactly fit the bounds of any religion (not any that I know of anyway). This is because in the 1600s and early 1700s, slavery was not as established in the Americas as it came to be in later centuries. Therefore, when it came to slaves, there was no solid religion. Their beliefs varied greatly because the slaves that came from Africa had their native beliefs, and the slaves born in America were taught these beliefs by their parents, but were also introduced to Christianity and such by their European/Colonial "owners." As a result, slaves kind of ended up making their own religion, but it took decades for it to become established amongst them. This amalgamation of beliefs that they adopted became known as voodoo, especially amongst slaves who were held in what is now the Louisiana area. **

**Jeremy's accent, which Caroline makes several internal notes of, is so strange to her because his parents were born in Africa, but he was born in America. So he grew up hearing his parents and others speaking their native language, which he can also speak, but he also grew up with French and English. (French because he was held in areas of the New World that were claimed by France, not England. He was also taught English along with the other slaves so that if they were ever sold to English holders, they would be able to understand and obey their "owners"). So the combination of his parent's native tongue, French, and English created a very unique sounding accent exclusive to him and other slaves raised in similar conditions to him. **

**Jeremy started out as a slave working on a plantation, but in the early 1700s, colonies in the Louisiana area weren't as well established as the English colonies on the east coast. So the plantation owner that he lived under eventually sold all of his slaves and pursued a different lifestyle. Jeremy and his brother, who were between 18 and 22 years at the time, were sold to a privateer who kept slaves on his ship. Jeremy's parents were regarded as too old to learn any new trades (none of the slaves knew how to sail yet or how to maintain a ship), and they were sold to someone else. That was the last time Jeremy saw his parents. His brother fell ill while a few years later and died. When Klaus's crew overtook the ship and offered Jeremy a place among their crew, he took his brother's name as his surname. Jeremy Philip. **

**Ta da! That's Jeremy's story , for anyone who's still here with me. Anyone? *cricket cricket * Ok, *bows head in shame * Never mind then...**

**Until next time, see ya! ;)**


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